“Nick, catch,” I yelled, tossing the ball at the cute blonde. We had been out on the court for nearly an hour by then and I had been going back and forth between spectator and participant.
Brian looked incredibly happy and I realized that he was in his element on the court. He was great with a basketball and completely at ease with Nick. It was on that court that he forgot about his job title, that he forgot he was adored and admired by millions. Out there he was just Brian, a twenty-five-year-old guy relaxing with his best friend.
I watched him play, scanning the area every few minutes just to make sure it was clear. He was barely six months older than I was but he had a life harder than most people twice his age. It was sad to realize to accomplish your dream sometimes you have to give up something equally important to you. For Brian, it meant giving up his privacy, the life he should have led in exchange for the chance to sing with the gift God gave him. For me it meant time away from my family more often then even I liked for a chance to protect others.
.I was young and I looked younger but I had the kind of experience most people in my field craved for. Because of my family history I had been in the business at a young age. I had been trained in self-defense, surveillance, private investigating, three different languages, and I was an excellent shot with a handgun though I refused to use one for personal reasons I never shared. My resume in my field would impression even some that had been in the business for twenty years prior to my entrance. Not to mention that I never just left a client afterwards. I remained in touch with any of them that wanted to keep a connection. I never just protected them, I became their friend, a confidant in a time of fear and need. I got Christmas cards from Elton John and birthday presents from Julia Roberts. Garth Brooks called me every couple of months to tell me news on his girls and Jon Bon Jovi flew me out to his place every once in a while for a mini vacation of a couple of days of peace. There were never just jobs to me.
What scared me though is that this job was going to become a lot more important to me then I wanted or Brian needed.
“Oh my God, its Brian Littrell!”
I heard the cry across the park and was by Brian’s side before he could blink. Four teenage girls came running at him then.
“It’s all right. I can handle four of them,” he whispered, grinning at me.
He was a true gentleman, stopping his game to sign autographs and talk for a few minutes about the other guys, the next album and so on. Then suddenly they realized that the man next him was Nick Carter and he got their attention from then on.
“I don’t even get to play a single game in peace,” he confided, quietly, watching Nick sign autographs.
“I’m sorry,” I found myself answering.
“For what?”
“For not being able to give you the perfect life. The career you love but the privacy you deserve,” I explained.
“It’s not your job to give that to me, Ryder.”
“Doesn’t stop me from wanting to. The sad truth is that you aren’t the only one I know who wants the best of both worlds. I promise nothing with happen to you though, Brian. You will be fine as long as you are in my hands,” I promised.
“I believe you,” he said, reaching up to squeeze my shoulder but he grimaced with the action.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I think I pulled something with that last shot I took. No big deal,” he answered, rubbing his shoulder.
“Come, let’s head home. I know exactly what you need. Nick, you gonna be all right?” I asked the blonde quietly.
“Yeah, I’m out of here anyway. I have a date with Sara tonight,” he answered.
“Oh, Sara,” Brian teased.
“Knock it off, B-rok. Catch you later,” he said, smiling as he turned and headed home.
“Come on, handsome. Let’s go home,” I said to Brian.
“Sounds good to me,” he said, slinging his good arm around my shoulders as we left the park.
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