Not an hour went by when there wasn’t a phone call or enquiry about her wellbeing
Somehow this had gotten into the press....
A small piece had appeared on a newswire from National Geographic..presumably to reassure all their readers and freelancers that they take good care of their people!!
Somewhere in that chaos of information had appeared Nick’s name
An eagle eyed reporter had noticed it...put two and two together..
Heather’s accident ....the sudden cancellation of shows for the group in Europe ...
and “Hey Presto” a very juicy news scoop for the gossip columns...
It wasn’t been long before the “family crisis” that had been the original reason for the tour stoppage became ...*Tragedy befalls Nick Carter* his life was dissected ....his previous girlfriends contacted the whole thing blew up out of proportion...
The storylines ranged from fairly accurate accounts of her “talent as a photographer , professional resume and the unfortunate encounter with the mudslide.....”to her “running away to a remote destination to be free of Nick’s over possessive tendencies that threatened to ruin their new love!...”
Even Heather had to laugh at that one!!
Nick couldn’t laugh....
Fortunately no mention was made of Simon and his arrest
Heather insisted on staying out of view totally...
They had not yet been photographed together and Heather wanted to keep it that way....
Her common sense prevailing over Nick’s overexcitable decision making skills....
Nonetheless...
Nick handled it all well and professionally despite the colossal emotional havoc going on in his head.....
It had been two weeks since they arrived back in Europe to continue the tour
The usual array of signs appeared at concerts and outside hotels
Newer signs ranged from “Nick can possess me anytime” to ..”We love mud(slides)”
to.....”Get well soon Heather” but now he was noticing another change ..
Ever since some sneaky reporter had gotten into the hotel lounge and cornered him complete with camera crew and practically grilled him about his “girlfriends brush with death....”
Nick’s shock and distress evident in the snatched photographs they took and then flashed around the media market
Billy had been livid to the point of “spontaneous combustion”....
and the media hack would probably remember the outline of Billy’s face forever being as how it was about a millimetre from his own face!!!
That image travelled the wires and softened a few hearts...In the process it also opened eyes to their relationship..
More and more signs with well wishing appeared
Signs that made Nick look twice and smile proudly....
Signs that one night mid show made him grab the mic and make a heartfelt thank you to all the people who had been so supportive thru their scary time....
And with Nick’s usual expressive sweep of the hand he included everybody in the audience
that night and every other night.....
Kevin saw the tears glisten in the back of Nick’s eyes and was at his side in an instant ...swiftly followed by Brian...
A group hug followed with Howie and Alex grabbing on tight...
The arena erupted in whooping screams...
Nick mouthed a tearful thank you to his brothers...
He realised he had grown up and maybe ....just maybe his fans would come with him on this journey....
From her private box above the crowd Heather watched with tears swimming in her eyes......
She asked to be left alone ...
As she heard the door click shut ....she succumbed to the days of pent up tears that needed to flow....
Every day she had remembered Cora ...and the things she had told her.
And yes today it seemed less painful than the memory did yesterday
But that man down there on that stage....did he have a right to know it all...? would it be a help or a hindrance to their love...? and now it was all coming out in the open...Could she stop herself from running...?Was Nick’s love enough for her...? Or would the pull of her beloved volcanoes threaten Nick’s growing happiness.
She reached in her purse and took out the oblong card from inside...it's edges crumpled from repeated handling ....from being constantly taken out and put back....
Her damp eyes scanned Mike Connery's name and his contact numbers
Heather blinked a couple of times as she looked down at Nick dancing and singing his heart out.....
Slowly she put the card back in her purse.