Chapter Nine

    A small circular table was set near the edge of the small cliff, and the view of the city came into view. The table was decorated with a white linen table cloth drapped over it and two candles flickered from the wick. A bottle of wine was being chilled in a silver containor of ice, and their meal was covered by a silver top.
    She turned to Justin, who had a grin on his face. "Justin, this is too much," she said.
    He shrugged. "This is nothing," he said as he pulled her over to the table. "I went for low key, since I know you don't like anything fancy."
    She laughed as he pulled the chair out fo her. "If this isn't fancy for you, then I can't even imagine what is."
    He chuckled as he sat down. "Just wait until you see the food."
    She gave him a funny look, before she lifted the silver top and laughed. "Justin Timberlake, you surprise me."
    He grinned. "Number three, supersized it," he said as he lifted his as well.
    "Held the pickle?" she teased as she picked up a french fry.
    He lifted a brow. "You watch SNL, huh?"
    She shrugged and smiled. "Nothing else on that night."
    "Uh-huh. Did you enjoy it?"
    "Damn near peed in my pants," she blurted.
    Justin busted out laughing. "We had a blast doing it."
    She smiled. "This is nice, Justin. Thank you for doing this."
    "It wasn't a big deal," he said. "I wanted to go somewhere nice, but i didn't want to deal with the crowd. So I brought all the essentials of a fancy dinner out here."
    "Except for the food," she teased.
nbsp;   "Yeah, but I didn't think you'd want to eat snail."
    She wrinkled her nose. "Hell no."
    He chuckled. "Didn't think so."
    They had small talk as they finished their dinner. Misty talked a lot about her parents, and how wonderful they were. She talked about how they would take a trip every summer together, and each summer would be a different place. "This past summer was the hardest for me," she said as she took a sip of her wine. "We were going to go to Rome."
    He sighed. "I'm sorry, that must have been hard."
    "It was," she said and then managed a smile. "But I'm getting better. I will always miss them, but it's time that I moved on."
    He looked at her and could tell she tried to be so brave. He admired her so much for that, it made her a strong person. He slowly stood up and walked over to her and held out his hand. "Dance with me?"
    Her hand trembled as she placed it in his. "There's no music," she said softly as she stood up.
    "Sure there is," he said as he pulled her in his arms. He placed one large hand at the small of her back and linked his other hand with hers. "What do you hear?" he said huskily as he rubbed his rough cheek against hers.
    She placed a hand on his shoulder and gripped his fingers tighter as he rested their joint hands on his chest. "I....I hear the wind."
    He pulled her tighter against him. "Mm-hmm," he mumbled softly in her ear. "What else?"
    She let out a shaky breath. "My heartbeat."
    "Is your heart beating quickly?" he asked as he traveled his hand up her back and carressed her naked back.
    She shivered. "It's racing."
    "Really?" he said as he pulled back and looked down at her. He waited until she looked up into his eyes. "Because I was sure that was the sound of my heart."
    She licked her lips as her eyes traveled down to her lips and then flickered up to his. His head was closer to her and his eyes lingered on her mouth. She closed her eyes and breathed his name when he felt his warm breath fan her lips. His lips touched hers softly and he pulled back to look at her, making sure she was okay with it.
    She ran her hands up his arms and linked them around his neck as she leaned into him. That was the reassurance he needed. His mouth swooped down on hers once more, but lingered this time. They both moaned against their lips, as they enjoyed the feel of their lips melting together. Misty tightened her grip on him and relaxed against him.--enjoying the feel of his hard body against hers. She felt safe in his arms, she felt whole again. For the first time in a long time there was something for her to be happy about.
    Justin lifted his hands and cupped her face as he nibbled at her lips. Her mouth was so inviting and her lips were soft as satin. She fit perfectly against him, he thought. Like a puzzle almost. She smelled incredible, a mixture of the distand sea breeze and roses. He was about to deepen the kiss to see if she tasted just as good, but a cell phone ringing pulled them apart.
    Misty blushed. "Sorry," she said shly and then pulled away and walked to the table to find her ringing purse.
    Justin took a deep breath and stuffed his hands in his pockets. He watched her hair dance with the wind as she leaned over to dig through her purse. He wanted to reach out and touch the silky strands so bad. Her profile was dressed in moonlight....she looked breathtaking.
    Her eyes met his as she clicked on the cellphone and smiled. "Hello?" she asked and then her smile faded. "What? Is she okay??"
    Justin immediately ran to her when he saw her face drain with color. He rubbed her back when he heard the crack in her voice. "Okay," she said with a sniff. "Okay, I'll be right there." She turned of her phone and she bowed her head in sorrow.
    "What is it, sweetie," he said as he began to run his hands up her bare arms.
    She turned to his warmth with a sob and wrapped her arms around him. "It's Lilly," she mumbled in his chest.
    Justin's body tensed. "What happened?"
    "She...She had a heart attack."
    "God," he breathed and then hugged her tighter. "Is she....I mean did she...."
    She shook her head. "No....but the doctors said that...that it could be anytime now...and it won't be long."
    "I am so sorry, Misty," he said and then kissed the top of her head. He grabbed her shaking shoulders and pulled her back so he could look at her. He cupped her face and wiped the tears that streamed down her face with the pads of his thumb. "I'm going with you."
    She didn't argue, because she wouldn't have it any other way. She nodded. "Okay."
    He kissed her forehead, and then kissed away the tears. "Let's go," he said as he put a arm around her and led her to the limo.
    "What about the table and...."
    "I'll take care of it," he assured her. "Let's just concentrate on Lilly. She needs you right now."
    She nodded with a sob. "I need her too," she said and then hugged him close. "I need you, too, Justin."
    "I won't leave your side," he said and then kissed her softly before they both disappeared in the limo and headed for the hospital.

    Justin laced his fingers with Misty as they quietly rode the elevator up to level five. Mike was standing behind them, but never said a word. Misty tore her eyes away from the floor and looked up at Justin. He looked down at her and gave her an encouraging smile as he squeezed her hand.
    She gave him a sad smile. "Thank you for being here," she said softly.
    "I wouldn't be anywhere else," he told her.
    "And...and if your 24 hours were up?" she asked as she gazed up at him.
    Just reached up with his free hand and cupped the side of her face. He rubbed his cheek gently with the pads of his thumb as he leaned down and took her mouth. He lingered on her soft lips and she moaned softly against his lips before he finally pulled away. "Then I guess I'd work afterhours."
    She didn't know what to say. She was speechless. She started to open her mouth to say something....anything, but the elevator beeped and the doors slid open. Mike cleared his throat and put his large hand on Justin's back to lead them into the hallway. They made their way down the tile floor hallway to her room and saw Laney standing outside of it. "Laney!"
    The woman turned her head and then sighed with relief as she watched her run towards her. Misty let go of Justin's hand and hugged Laney. "Thank God you're here."
    "Is she..."
    "No," she said and then pulled her back. "She refused to say goodbye until she saw you. She doesn't want to see me anymore, we have said our goodbyes."
    Misty wiped away a tear. "Okay," she said and then turned to Justin. "Come on."
    "Do you want some privacy with her?" Justin asked.
    She shook her head. "No, she'd want to see you."
    He smiled and then took her hand and together they walked into her room. Misty's breath caught and she buried her face in his chest at the sight of Lilly. Justin wrapped her arms around her and closed his eyes. She looked incredibly weak, he thought and then opened his eyes to look at her. The blood was drained from her face and she had deep grooves under both of her eyes. She looked so helpless and delicate, as if she could break with one touch.
    As if Lilly sensed their presence, she moaned softly as her eyes opened. "Mi...Misty?"
    Misty tore her head away from his chest, and revealed her red swollen eyes. She ran to her side. "Hi, Lilly," she said softly as she sat gently on the side of her bed. "I'm here."
    She smiled softly. "Don't worry, I'm not gone yet. I'm hanging in there and I want to spend time with you."
    "Oh, Lilly," she cried. "What am I going to do without you?"
    Lilly lifted her tired hand and laid it on top of hers. "You'll survive. You're a strong woman, my dear." Her eyes shifted to Justin and her smiled brightened. "And you have Justin."
    Justin chuckled softly and then walked to the other side of the bed and sat down. He kissed her wrinkled forehead. "Hi Lilly."
    "You going to take care of my girl, right?"
    He grabbed her hand. "Of course, Lilly. I'll take care of her."
    "Good...good," she said and then coughed lightly. "I saw....I saw you on TV today during my TV time."
    He smiled. "You did, huh?"
    "Yes...so handsome. I didn't know you were famous."
    "Well, it's something I do on the side," he said with a wink.
    Lilly managed to laugh. "Misty, this boy is a keeper."
    Misty smiled. "You don't have to tell me twice."
    "You and the guys in your group....N...N..."
    "NSYNC," he reminded her.
    "Yes..that's it. Very nice five handsome boys," she said and then beamed at him. "You sang a song.....a pretty song, and were on a moving stage."
    "Yes, we were singing This I Promise You. Did you like it?"
    She smiled. "Oh, yes very much."
    Justin then had an idea. He wanted to give Lilly something special before she left the world, something she will remember. He just hope he had enough time. Justin leaned over and kissed her forehead. "I'll be right back. You spend time with Misty."
    "Thank you, Justin," Misty said quietly and then watched him leave.
    Justin closed the door and ran over to Mike. "Hey, let me see your cell phone." Mike unclipped it from his belt and handed it to him. Justin dialed and waited impatiently. "JC!"
    "Justin?" he asked. "Hey, how's the day going? Is she as crazy as she..."
    "Not now, JC....how fast can you guys get to Memorial Hospital in LA?"
    "Hospital?! Why, what's wrong??"
    "Nothing, just get on the next flight...hell better yet take the concord."
    "Justin, I..."
    "Just get ready and get the guys. Call me back on Mike's cell when you're on your way and I'll explain everything."
    He sighed. "Okay, I trust you. I'll get on it."
    "Thanks, C," he said and then clicked off the cell phone and sighed. "Hang on Lilly...just hang on a few more hours."

Chapter Ten