“What to wear today?” She flipped through her clothes and tried to decide what she felt like that day.
Because her clothing options were limited during the week, Meredith tried to enliven her weekend with bright nail polish, funky hairstyles, and unique clothes. While only having to worry that her uniforms were clean and pressed was a blessing some mornings, there were days when she just wanted to slip on a pair of bright green capris and a yellow tank top to break up the routine. She pulled out a pair of jeans and a white tank top, tossing them on the bed. She slipped on her underwear and pulled on her clothes. As she walked into the bathroom, she twisted her curls up so that only part of them hung down and secured the rest with some hair sticks that had movable butterflies on them. Digging through her hair drawer, she pulled out some little colored clips shaped like flowers and clipped them into her hair in random spots. After dusting some powder on her face, she stepped back and looked at herself.
“Good enough for government work.”
Meredith walked back into the bedroom and slipped into a pair of mules before heading to the kitchen. She was eating toast, drinking juice, and watching the news when Brian and Kevin walked into the kitchen.
“You’re early.” She smiled at them.
“It’s a fluke.” Kevin poured a glass of juice for himself before he sat down at the table next to Meredith.
He stared at her, the early morning making it difficult for him to fully comprehend her appearance. “What’s in your hair?”
She turned and twisted her head to show what she’d done. “I like to be a little different on the weekends.”
Brian sat down with his bowl of cereal and nodded. “Makes sense to me.”
They quickly finished their food and drinks and cleaned up their mess.
“Ready?” Meredith grabbed her purse and keys.
“Yep.” “Sure.”
They walked out to the garage, and Meredith unlocked the doors to the Honda. They climbed in and backed out of the garage, blinking in the sunshine as they did it.
“Another beautiful day.” Kevin pulled on his sunglasses and pulled his baseball hat lower on his forehead. “Arianna and Tony will have a good time in the pool today.”
“Arianna and Tony?” Brian leaned forward from the backseat.
“Giuseppe’s grandchildren. I’m babysitting today. That’s why D went with me last night. He’s her favorite, and she’s really shy so I wanted her to meet him one-on-one so she wouldn’t totally freeze up.”
“What about Tony?” Kevin leaned against the door and watched Meredith.
“Oh, Tony’s only six months old, so he could care less.” She grinned over at him as she turned into the commissary parking lot.
They parked the car and headed into the building. Pulling out her wallet, she flashed her ID card at the door. Turning, she watched the two men as they tried to figure out what they were supposed to do.
“ID cards.” Meredith tried not to laugh.
“Oh.” Brian dug his out, as did Kevin.
Once they were inside, she directed each of them to grab a cart. “I like to shop as little as possible, so we’ll load up and limit the time we have to come back.”
She was methodical in her shopping, much like she planned her profiles. Her list was laid out according to the aisles, and she efficiently ordered them to get what she needed. By the time the hour was up, she’d successfully filled the three carts with what she hoped would be enough to get them through the next couple of weeks.
She maneuvered them over to a checkout line and started unloading the baskets. As she finished with one, she pushed it to the end and out of the way so that the bagger could have access to his bags and his carts. The cashier stared in wonder at the groceries flowing past her.
“Throwing a party, Commander?”
“No, Jill, just shopping for friends who are staying with me. How’s Will doing in school?”
“Pretty good. He’s passed all of his tests, so he should be getting that promotion to Petty Officer.”
“That’s great news. Tell him congratulations for me.”
Jill smiled as she handed Meredith her receipt. “I will, Commander.”
Meredith turned to the young man pushing the cart with her groceries. Smiling, she linked her arm through the arm he offered.
“How’s my favorite bagger today?”
Joey grinned, the smile lighting up his whole face. “Just fine, Miss M. I’m going to start school in September.”
“That’s wonderful, Joey. Has your mom been helping you with your school work?”
“Yes, ma’am. She said to tell you thank you for helping us find the teacher. He was real nice.”
Meredith unlocked the trunk of the Honda, and Brian and Kevin helped Joey unload the groceries. They ended up filling half of the back seat, and Brian had to squeeze in to fit. Kevin crawled in the front seat, and both men watched her as she talked to the young man with Down’s Syndrome.
“Now, you let me know how you’re doing in school, okay?”
“Yes, ma’am. I love you, Miss M.” Joey wrapped his arms around her.
“I love you, too, Joey. Be good.” Meredith dropped a kiss on his forehead.
“Bye!” Joey waved madly as he wheeled the carts back to the commissary.
Meredith climbed into the car and put on her sunglasses. She couldn’t help laughing as she looked into her rearview mirror and saw Brian holding a couple of bags and several more leaning against him. “Next time, we’ll bring the Land Cruiser.”
“Good idea. I think the broccoli is getting a little too friendly.” Brian smiled back at her reflection.
**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**BsB**
The trio walked into the house to find Nick sitting at the kitchen table, Stasi plopped on the floor at his feet. As he ate his cereal, he rubbed her belly with his foot.
“Carter, your milk’s in the car. I suggest you go get it before it spoils.” Meredith looked at him and Stasi and shook her head.
He grinned and got up to place his empty bowl in the sink before heading out to the garage.
“And bring in some other bags while you’re at it.” Meredith yelled after him as he disappeared through the doorway.
“yes, mom.”
“What was that?”
Nick cleared his throat. “Yes, ma’am.”
Meredith grinned at Kevin and Brian. They both shook their heads, and Kevin looked at the door through which Nick had disappeared.
“I don’t know how you do it, but can you come with us next time we go on tour and keep Nick in line?”
“Is he really that bad?” Meredith began putting away the frozen food that they’d brought in first.
“He was a kid when we started, so I still tend to think of him that way.” Kevin reached over her head as he put some cans away in the cabinet.
His body pressed close to her, and Meredith took a deep breath as she felt herself grow warm. Kevin felt the slight shudder and looked down at her to see if she was okay. He saw her run her tongue over her lips in a subconscious gesture before he moved away. He could understand her reaction, and despite himself, the male in him puffed a little with pride.
They finally finished putting the groceries away after Nick helped bring in the last of the bags. Meredith looked at the clock and realized that Arianna and Tony would be there shortly.
“The kids will be here soon. I figured I’d wait to start lunch until they got here.”
Nick, Kevin, and Brian nodded in agreement. AJ wandered into the kitchen and sat down at the table, staring at Meredith.
“I like your hair like that.” He studied the little clips.
“Thanks. There’s no telling what I’ll look like on the weekends. Sometimes I have to break out of the routine of wearing a uniform five days a week.”
The doorbell rang as Howie was walking through the foyer, so he stopped to answer it. Opening the door, he looked down to see Arianna in front of him and a woman with a baby walking up the driveway.
“Hello, Arianna. How are you today?” Howie held out his hand to the girl.
“Hi, Mr. Howie. I’m good, how are you?”
“I’m good, too. Is this your mom?” He smiled at the woman.
“Yes. Mama, this is Mr. Howie. Miss Merry is training him and the other Backstreet Boys.”
“Hello, I’m Theresa Alberti. It’s a pleasure. Arianna told me how she met you last night.”
“Please come in, Mrs. Alberti. Meredith is around here somewhere.”
“It’s Theresa, and thank you.” Theresa stepped into the foyer and set Tony’s diaper bag on the table. Arianna placed her backpack on the floor next to it, and Howie noticed she had BSB stickers all over it.
Meredith walked into the hallway, followed by the rest of the guys. She hugged Arianna, then Theresa, rubbing Tony’s head as well.
“Come stai {How are you}? Hai sentito la data ufficiale del ritorno a casa di tony {Have you heard the official date for Tony coming home}?”
“Io sto bene e tu {I’m good, how about yourself}? Naturalmente, con questi bellissimi uomini da guardare qui, come puoi fare qualcosa ma bene {Of course, with these fine looking men here, how can you be anything but good}? Tony sara' a casa tra 13 giorni {Tony will be home in 13 days}.”
Meredith laughed. “Si, e' difficile fare qualcosa ma bene o male dipende da cosa stai facendo---con loro intorno {Yes, it’s hard to be anything but good---or bad depending on what you’re doing---with them around}. Sono contenta di sentire di tony {Glad to hear about Tony}.”
“Stai venendo alla festa {Are you coming to the party}? Egli vorra'vederti {He’ll want to see you}.”
“Provero' {I’ll try}. Dipende da questi ragazzi e dal loro allenamento {It depends on these guys and their training}.”
“Portali lungo {Bring them along}. Sono sicuro essi lo godranno {I’m sure they’ll enjoy it}.”
“Vedremo {We’ll see}.”
Their heads moved back and forth between the two women as rapid-fire Italian filled the air. Meredith looked over at them and laughed.
“This is Theresa, Arianna, and Tony Alberti. Theresa, this is Kevin, Howie, Brian, AJ, and Nick.”
Theresa nodded at each of them. “I met Howie already. It’s nice to meet you. Thank you for allowing Arianna and Tony to crash your party.”
Brian bent down to stare at the little girl. “Hi, I’m Brian.”
Arianna held out her hand, smiling shyly as he took it. “Hi, Mr. Brian. I’m Arianna.”
“You can just call me Brian if you’d like.”
“No, I can’t.” “No, she can’t.” Both Alberti women spoke at once, but Theresa let Arianna finish.
“Mama says it’s disrespectful, but I can call you Mr. Brian, if you don’t mind.”
“I don’t mind at all, Arianna.”
Stasi moved toward the little girl and licked her face. Arianna laughed and wrapped her arms around the dog’s neck.
“Hi, Stasi. I’ve missed you.”
Theresa handed Tony over to Meredith. “Their stuff is in their bags. I should be back around three or so. I’ve got my cell, so call if you need anything, or you can call Dad.”
Meredith nodded and shooed Theresa with her hands. “Go, have a good time. We’ll be fine.”
She nodded and kissed her children goodbye. “Be good for Miss Merry, okay?”
“Yes, Mama.” Arianna gave her mother another hug before she went back to playing with Stasi.
Theresa nodded to the men. “Goodbye. Have fun this afternoon.”
“I’ll walk you to your car.” Howie held the door open for Theresa and followed her out onto the driveway.
Before she climbed into her car, she put her hand on Howie’s arm. “Thank you for coming to see Arianna last night. That will really help her open up while she’s here. She can be very shy.”
Howie patted her hand. “We’ll make sure she has a good time.”
Theresa smiled and got into the car, then driving off with a wave. Howie walked back to the house. Entering, he found Meredith blowing raspberries on Tony’s cheek.
“Where’d everybody go?” “Arianna went to my room to change to go swimming, as did the other guys. I’m getting ready to start lunch. We’ll eat, then play outside.”
“Need some help?”
They walked into the kitchen. Meredith handed Tony to Howie. “Hold him for a bit, will you? He’s still a little leery of Stasi, and if I put him on the floor, she might drown him in a puddle of dog drool.”
Howie laughed as he gathered Tony into his arms. He played with the baby, nibbling on fingers and making funny faces as Meredith gathered the stuff to make sandwiches. She pulled out the deli meat, bread, condiments, tomatoes, onion, lettuce, and pickles. She laid the food out on the counter and got out plates and utensils as well. Pitchers of water and iced tea were arranged alongside bottles of soda. Finally, she pulled out chips, cookies, and fruit.
“Guess it’s time to give the battle cry.”
Howie stood up and handed Tony back to her. “I’ll do it.”
“LUNCH!!!”
The rapid movement of feet was followed by the echo of laughter as Brian and Nick raced into the kitchen. Nick reached the counter a moment before Brian.
“I win.”
“You cheated.”
“Did not.”
“Did too.”
“Did not.”
“Did too.”
“Boys, boys, boys, give it a rest. Just grab some food and plant your butts on a chair, okay?” Meredith leaned against the refrigerator with Tony in her arms.
The three men fixed their sandwiches and sat down to get out of the way. Kevin wandered in and stared at the food. He made himself a sandwich, grabbing a banana as well. AJ walked in holding Arianna’s hand. Meredith watched as he helped the little girl make her lunch, then led her over to the table to sit next to Nick.
Meredith hid her smile as she watched the little girl look up at Nick, who looked down at her and made a silly face. She giggled, and each man smiled in response.
“Want me to take him while you fix yours?” AJ stood next to Meredith.
She handed the baby over and pulled out two plates. “What do you want on your sandwich?”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I know, AJ. Just tell me what you want.”
He stared at her in shock. When she didn’t get an answer, she looked up at him. “What’s wrong?”
“You called me AJ.”
“I’ll do that on occasion. Enjoy it when it happens, ‘cause I’ll mainly be calling you by your last name and it will usually be in a loud voice.”
AJ grinned at her, and she grinned back. “Now, what do you want on your sandwich?”
Meredith fixed their plates and took them to the table. When everyone was seated, Meredith asked Arianna if she wanted to say grace. Shy, she shook her head no, so Brian volunteered instead. It was a short prayer, since it was obvious that both children were hungry. Meredith opened one of the jars of baby food that she kept at her house. Before she even had the spoon in the jar, Tony was opening his mouth and leaning forward. AJ grabbed hold of the baby before he could slide off, laughing at his antics.
“Hungry, is he?
Meredith laughed. “Yep, he is. He’s just like his daddy. Tony would probably eat anything that didn’t eat him first. Man, he even ate the hospital food in Germany. That was too scary.”
AJ watched her, slowly processing what she said about a hospital. Wonder what happened?
Lunch was filled with a lot of laughter, and Arianna slowly warmed up to the guys. She even took Nick’s hand when they got up to go into the living room.
“Arianna has several movies here. You guys can put one in until it’s time for us to go outside.” Meredith wiped the counter and table down before tossing the cloth into the sink.
She and Howie had finished the dishes and left the kitchen to put on their swimsuits. Howie was finished first and walked into the den, finding an empty spot on the floor in front of the sofa. Kevin was stretched out, with Tony sitting on his chest. Arianna was curled up between Nick and Brian on the other sofa, and AJ was seated in front of them. Howie looked over to find AJ thoroughly caught in the story. He shook his head and smiled. Meredith appeared in the doorway and looked at the people sprawled all over her den.
“You guys ready to go outside?”
“In a minute, we’re getting to the good part.” AJ didn’t even look up from the screen. Arianna nodded from her position behind him.
“Well, come out when you’re ready. I’m going to gather the towels, sunscreen, and water.” She disappeared from view, and they could hear her humming as she gathered everything they’d need for a day in the sun.
While it was quite warm outside, it wasn’t overly humid, and Meredith laid down on a chaise to soak up some sun. She had the sunscreen sitting out so she could put it on the kids when they made their way outside, so she felt relatively prepared for the afternoon. Picking up the remote, she clicked on the CD player, and hit the shuffle button so that a variety of music would be played.
As the seven of them walked out, AJ’s maniacal laughter echoed from the speakers as Larger Than Life began. Arianna quietly sang along as she walked towards Meredith, who sat up and joined her in singing.
“Remember the concert, Miss Merry? It was the mostest fun I’ve ever had.” The little girl held out her arms to be covered in sunscreen.
“It was the mostest fun.” Meredith agreed, rubbing the lotion all over Arianna’s body.
“You’re all ready, little one. Remember the rules, ‘kay?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Arianna nodded and walked over to the pool edge. She stared at the water for a moment, then jumped in.
Nick watched her and waited until she moved out of the way before he jumped in as well. Kevin sat down beside Meredith, holding Tony in his arms. “Does he swim?”
“Yeah, as soon as I get his swimming diaper on.” She quickly changed his diapers, adding the little swimsuit that Theresa packed in his bag. She lathered sunscreen all over him, making sure to coat his head with it.
As she finished, Kevin stripped of his shirt and dropped it on another chair before reaching towards the sky in a stretch. Meredith enjoyed the view from her seat, holding Tony between her legs.
“Want to take him in?” She looked up him.
“Can I?” Kevin was a little surprised.
“Just be sure to hold on to him until you get him in his floatie. He likes to wiggle.”
Kevin held the baby firmly in his arms as he walked towards the pool and down the steps into the water. Meredith sat the floatie in the water, and he carefully fastened Tony into it. The baby was all smiles as he splashed and kicked in the water.
She looked around and found Brian standing beside the pool, still wearing his t-shirt. Meredith walked over to him and touched his arm.
“You can take off your shirt. We know about the heart surgery.”
“It can be a little disconcerting for some people.” He continued to play with the hem of his shirt as he glanced at Arianna.
“Don’t worry, we’re both quite familiar with scars.” She patted him on the arm before moving back to her chair.
Brain took off the shirt and jumped into the pool. Arianna gave his scar a cursory glance, then ignored it. He was a little surprised, but didn’t bring it up for fear of causing more attention than he wanted to deal with.
“Miss Merry! Miss Merry!” Arianna quickly focused her attention elsewhere.
“Yes, Arianna?”
“Come and play with me.”
“Give me a minute, okay?” Meredith applied some extra sunscreen to her face.
“Are you wearing your suit?” Arianna stared at her.
“Yes, ma’am. I’m wearing my suit.”
“But I can’t see it.” Arianna tried to look under Meredith’s t-shirt.
She raised it up so that Arianna could see that her swimsuit had Scooby Doo on it, just like Arianna’s. “See, it’s just like yours?”
“Why are you wearing that shirt?” The little girl swam towards the pool edge.
Meredith stared at her until Arianna nodded. “I forgot. I’m sorry.”
“Not a problem, it’s just difficult for some people, remember?”
“Yes, but you said if they’re your friends, they shouldn’t care.” Arianna tilted her head, clearly not understanding the problem.
By this time, each man was staring at her and Arianna, wondering what they were missing. Meredith sighed, knowing that she should have expected her words to come back and bite her.
“I don’t want to make them uncomfortable.”
“Whatever it is, I’m sure it will be fine.” Howie made waves with his arms, causing Tony to giggle as the ripples rocked him.
“Then I’ll need someone to apply some sunscreen to my back.”
“I’ll do it.” AJ walked over since he was the only one not yet in the pool.
Meredith handed him the bottle as he sat down behind her on the chaise. She pulled the t-shirt over her head, not surprised to hear the sharp intake of breath when he saw her back. She waited for him to pull away, but was surprised to feel the cool lotion being spread over her back in a strong caress.
He was silent for long moments as he made sure to evenly coat her skin. “Do I need to apply extra?”
Meredith was startled out her peaceful reverie by the question. “No, it’s 50 sunblock, so I’ll be okay for a bit. Thanks.”
She got up and walked over to the diving board. Stepping up on it, she walked to the edge and waited for everyone to move out of the way. Once clear, she bounced a couple of times before arching into a swan dive. Kevin got a brief look at her back as she slipped into the water. He shook his head, then looked at AJ, the question evident in his eyes. AJ nodded back and watched as Meredith swam up to the shallow end before surfacing. As she slowly rose to the surface, she arranged it so she’d end up in front of Tony, blowing bubbles at him. He loved it, patting her face as she placed kisses all over his. As she faced the baby, she realized that her back was to the others.
“Oh, fu…dge.” Nick breathed out, barely catching himself as he realized there were children present.
“What happened?”. Brian’s question was too soft for Meredith to hear, but Arianna did, as he unconsciously raised his hand to his chest.
“The bad man did it.” She floated next to Brian as he looked at Meredith.
“Bad man?” He turned to look at her.
“Yeah, over in the desert, before I was born. She and my daddy have them. He did it while he held them.”
By this time, the conversation was loud enough for Meredith to hear, and she wanted to curtail it before any details were brought up in front of Arianna. She turned around to face the guys. “We’ll talk about it later. Now, how about you crank up the music, McLean.”
“There you go, back to my last name again.”
“I told you to enjoy it while it lasted.”
“At least you didn’t yell.”
“Yet.” She grinned at him as he turned up the music.
Table of Contents
Chapter Three