Part Six

    "Justin?" Jennifer called out as she stepped in her bungalow. "I'm here." He walked out of the bedroom as he was in the middle of tucking in his white short sleeve button down in his khaki pants.
    "Hey are you...." He stopped when he saw her. She looked beautiful. She had on a black dress that had thin straps and the hem of it flowed to her midthighs. She wore her hair up in a bun, except for a few trendles that escaped from the sides of her face. "You look wonderful."
    She smiled shyly as she ran her hands down her dress. "Thank you. You look good too."
    "Thanks. It's not something I normally wear, though."
    "It fits you," she said with a smile. "You ready? He linked his arm with hers.
    "Whenever you are."
    Jennifer was the most beautiful one there and Justin was proud to have her at his side. They spent the night dancing, and feasting on finger foods. They even ran into the kids at the pool and Jennifer enjoyed watching Justin dancing with Jess. He had her on his hip as he spinned her to the music and she squealed in delight. After the party died down, they strolled on the beach, hands linked, sneaking in a few kisses here and now.
    When the finally went to bed, they just laid there and talked while they held each other. Justin telling her all about how NSYNC was discovered and she was telling him old stories about her uncles ranch. They slept in the next morning. Justin loved waking up next to her. He tiredly reached over and pulled him up against her, lazily nibbling on her ear. She smiled lazily, and then turned toward him to steal a few kisses.

    They finally manage to get themselves out of bed, and spent their last day together at the beach. They played in the surf, took a nap under the warm sun and Jen even managed to persuade Justin to let her bury him. They were out on the beach for the whole day and didn't walk back in the house until after dark. Justin decided to make her dinner and decided on pasta since it was the easiest. They took their plates outside and ate on the porch steps. When they finally went to bed, they talked forever. Because the sooner they went to bed, the sooner they would have to get up and leave each other the next morning.
    The next morning, Justin quietly slipped out of bed and packed up all his things. He walked to the edge of the bed and sat down next to Jennifer. He softly pulled back a strand of her hair and then leaned down and gave her a soft kiss. He then put the letter he wrote to her along with a single red rose on the pillow next to her. By the time Jennifer woke up and read the letter, telling her how much she meant to him and how he would never forget her, Justin was on the plane heading home.

    One week later Jennifer leaned tiredly on her elbows as her instructer was talking about the exciting life of chemistry. She tried to pay attention, but of course her mind was somewhere else. It was at the beach with a boy named Justin. A stupid boy, who didn't have the decency to tell her bye before he just left her all alone. Yeah, he gave her a sweet note and a rose, but it was all crap to her. She didn't want that, she wanted him.
    With a tired sigh, she leaned back in her chair. Get a grip, she told herself. You can't have him and you'll never will. What would he want with her anyway, they were like night and day. He led the glamour life and she led the day-to-day life. She should just be grateful with the time they did spend together and get on with her life. But she knew it wasn't gonna be that easy. The teacher finally let them go and she quickly gathered up her things and walked out of the classroom. She walked to her car and let out a groan when she saw the white slip on her windshield.
    "Dammit," she said as she tore the ticket off of her car. "It's not my freaking fault parking here sucks!" She got in her car and made her way through traffic. She was at a stoplight when “God Must of Spent A Little More Time On You," came on the radio. She let out a sigh as she leaned her head back and the tears began to fall. When his voice filled her car, it took her back on the beach. She could hear the sounds of the waves and the crackling of the fire and could see the way his eyes looked when he sang to her. Then the car honking behind her, brought her back to the present.
    "Dammit," she said as she quickly waved sorry and sped through the intersection. When she finally got to her apartment she dropped her keys on the counter and checked her messages. She had only one and it was from her mom. "Hey sweetie, give me a call when you get back from class. Hope everything is going okay. Love you." She didn't like the sound of her voice, she knew something was wrong. She quickly picked up her portable and dialed her mom's number.
    "Mom, what's up?" she asked when she answered. "You sounded pretty worried on the machine."
    She sighed. "Sweetie, do you think you can get away this weekend?"
    She shrugged. "I think so. Why?"
    "I'm gonna book you a flight to Montana. We're all going to the ranch."
    "The ranch? Why?"
    "Sweetie, the ranch has been sold. The new owner is letting us stay for one more weekend."

    Jennifer rested her head against her seat as she road in the backseat of the cab. She glanced outside and smiled at the rolling hills and the Snowcap Mountains from the distant she knew all too well. The cab driver made it's way up the windy dirt path and when the house came to view she had to bite her lips to keep the tears from coming.
    Her mom and dad and little brother were all ready there, she imagined. She had a test today, so she couldn't leave until noon. The gravel crunched beneath the tires as the cab pulled in front of the house. She tipped the driver before she got out and smiled when her family walked out of the house.
    "Hey sweetie," her mom said as she ran to her and gave her a hug. "It's so good to see you!"
    "Hi, Mom," she said as she hugged her back. "Dad, it's good to see you."
    "You too, Foo," he said as he hugged her.
    "Hey, squirt," she said as she rubbed Johns hair.
    "How's the eighth grade?"
    "It's cool," he said and then hugged her. "It's good to see you."
    "You, too," she said and kissed the top of his head. Her mom sighed.
    "Well, since were all here I guess its time."
    "For what?" Jen asked.
    "To meet the new owner. He wants to meet us."
    "What?? He's here?? Could he of least give us this weekend without talking about it, it hurts enough as it is."
    "Oh, honey," her mom said as he put an arm around her. "I haven't met him yet, but he seems like a reasonable man. He just wants us to know that he'll do the best he can with the place."
    "All right," he sighed. "Where is he?"
    "He told us to meet him in the barn," her dad said.
    She nodded and the four of them made their way to the barn. When they entered the smell brought back so many memories and the thought of never coming in here again almost made her cry. She let out a small cry when she heard her horse let out a soft whinny. "Oh, Baby," she said as she went to the mare. "I've missed you so much."
    Baby nudged her head against her coat and nipped at her shirt. She laughed. "Still remember don't you? Sorry girl, I don't have any carrots with me this time."
    "So this is your horse," a voice said behind him.
    Jennifer froze at the familiar voice behind her. She was afraid to turn around; afraid that it was just her imagination but when she did finally turn around she let out a cry when she saw Justin. "Oh my gosh," she said weakly. "Justin? Wha....What are you doing here?"
    He smiled softly, wanting so bad to take her in his arms. God, he missed her so much this past week. He wanted to reach out and touch her but he was almost afraid to. He shoved his hands in his pockets. "I was hoping you'd teach me how to run a ranch. Since I just bought one."
    Her eyes widened and tears started to fill her eyes. "You?" she cried. "You're the new owner."
    He nodded. "Well, sort of. It's still your families I'm just helping you guys out."
    She was in such complete shock she couldn't say anything. Her mom finally stepped in. "Are you Justin? Then one she was telling me about?"
    He turned to her mother. "Yes, mam. I've gotten the privilege of knowing your daughter at the beach and everytime she mentioned this place she practically glowed. I didn't want it to be taken away from her."
    "Oh," she cried as she hugged him. "Thank you so much. You don't know how much this means to us."
    Justin smiled over her shoulder at Jennifer who was looking up at him in wonder. He was wonderful, everything she wanted in a man. She loved him with all her heart. "Mom? Dad? Will you excuse us for a second?" she asked as she grabbed Justin's arm and pulled him away.
    "Sure," she said with a smile. "Come join us in the main house, we'll be celebrating."
    "Okay," she said and watched her family leave with excitement. She looked at Justin. "Why did you leave?" His smile faded as he looked at the ground.
    "I was scared."
    "Scared of what?"
    He looked back at her. "Of loving someone that much. I know it's no excuse, I hurt you and I'll always regret it, but....."
    She interrupted him when she leaned up and pressed her lips to hers. "I love you too, Justin," she whispered between kisses. "I love you so much!"
    He reached up and cupped her face as he deepened the kiss. "Jen," he mumbled against his lips. "Are you sure you want this." He looked down at her. "I won't always be with you. That hurts to say that, but the fact that I would drop everything to be with you scares me enough."
    She rested her forehead against his. "I know it won't be easy, but I'll be by your side whenever you need me. The days will be lonely without you, but that'll make the days I have with you much more brighter....." She kissed him softly. "That much more special."
    He leaned over and kissed his nose. "Thank you, for being a part of my life."
    "Thank you for letting me in your life," she said as she layed a hand on his cheek.
    He took her hand and kissed her palm. "Ready to go celebrate with your family?"
    She crinkled her nose as she pondered. "Not just yet," she said with a grin and then surprised him by tripping him.
    "Woah," he exclaimed as he fell backwards into the haystack with Jennifer falling on top of him. He looked up at her with a smile. "This is definitely a habit of ours."
    She grinned and kissed him. "A habit I don't tend on breaking."

The End!