Chapter 21

I walked into the office and said hi to some of my coworkers. Then I went to my desk.

"Hey Stranger," Melissa said.

Melissa was a friend of mine that I went to lunch with often. She also told me all of the gossip that was going around in the office. She was now covering for me.

"Hi, Melissa. I see you got stuck with my job. Sorry about that," I said.

"Yep, I did. But it's not that bad. So when are you coming back?" she asked.

"I'm not sure. That's why I'm here, I need to talk to Rick," I said.

"Oh, go ahead. He'll be happy to see you," Melissa said.

"Thanks," I said.

I gently knocked on his door and then entered. He was on the phone, as usual. He did most of his work over the phone. I waved to him and he smiled. He put up his finger, signaling one more minute. I mouthed okay, and then sat down. I stared out the window and prayed that he would let me take the next two months off. If he wouldn't let me, I decided that I was going to quit. I was determined to be with Kevin and I didn't care what it took to be with him.

"Yes. Thank you again for doing business with us. If you have any problems you know how to contact me," Rick said as he hung up.

"Hi, Janel," Rick said.

"Hi, Rick," I said.

"So I heard that you enjoyed the backstage pass?" he asked.

"Oh yes. I can never thank you enough for that Rick. It was incredible," I said.

"So how have you been since what happened?" he asked.

"Oh, well I'm getting better with the help of friends," I said.

"That's good to hear. So why are you here? You still have tomorrow off," he said.

"Yeah I know. And you would not believe how grateful I am for these days off, but I have a favor to ask," I said.

"Big or small?" he asked.

I looked down and said, "Big."

"What is it?" he asked patiently.

"Well Kevin and I have finally gotten back together, but he's on tour right now and I was wondering if. . .," I began and then started to trail off.

"You were wondering if I would give you the time off to go on tour with him. Right?" he questioned.

"Yeah," I said quietly.

Then I waited for his answer. I watched him rub his chin as he was in deep thought. Then he looked at me.

"Sure," Rick replied simply.

"What?" I asked shocked.

"I said sure. I know how much he means to you and I want to see you happy. Over these past eight years we've become really good friends, and I want to do this for you," he said.

"Oh, thank you so much Rick," I said as I rushed around his desk and gave him a big hug.

At the meeting

Denise had just finished telling the guys about their upcoming events. She told them who they were going to meet, how long they had for the interview, and how much time they had to sign autographs.

"So any questions guys?" Denise asked.

"No," they all replied.

Okay, well that's all for now. You guys have about an hour and a half until the interview," Denise said.

"Um, Denise. . .," Kevin said as he looked around at the guys. They all shook their heads for him to continue. "We want to talk to you about Lou."

"What about?" she asked while sitting back down.

"We want out of our contracts with him. He's becoming way too controlling, especially with our personal lives," Kevin said.

"Kevin you can't just get out of a contract like that for that reason," she said.

"We know, but there's other things. Such as we haven't see any of the money coming in," Howie said.

"I think we need a change. He's putting a lot of pressure on us right now and he's always in a foul mood," Brian said.

"Yeah, he doesn't show any emotion any more. It's just all about his image and his money. I mean after what happened with Janel, he didn't care, at all. He was just worried that the media would get a hold of it," A.J. said.

"Yesterday, he was waiting in Kevin's room to talk to him about Janel. He was going to tell him not to see her anymore," Brian said.

"I'm a grown man. I can see who ever I please. He's treating all of us like little kids. And the way he treats Janel angers me to no end," Kevin said. "Denise, please help us," Kevin pleaded.

"Okay. I'll set up a meeting for you to meet some lawyers. Don't worry I'll get the best. But you guys know this might effect the tour and everything else that's going on right now. And this might be an ugly battle that could last for years," she said.

"Yes, we know this. But things aren't getting better, they're only getting worse. And if we don't do something now, it will effect the tour," Kevin said.

"Okay. Is that all?" she asked.

"Yeah, thanks," the guys said.

"Oh, Denise. Can I talk to you in private?" Kevin asked.

"Sure, Kevin. How about in my room?" she asked.

"Sure. I'll meet you there in a few minutes," he said.

"Okay. Bye guys!" Denise said as she left the room.

"Bye!" they said as she left.

"So what are we going to do for an hour and a half?" Howie asked.

"I'm going to wake up Stacey," A.J. said happily.

"Frick and I are playing video games," Nick said excitedly.

"I have to go to talk to Denise soon," Kevin said.

"Okay, everybody's got something to do except for me," Howie said feeling left out.

"No, you've got something to do," Kevin said. Howie looked at him puzzled. "You're going too be here with Lauren."

"What?" Howie asked.

"Janel's coming over and she's bringing Lauren with her," Kevin said.

"No. She can't," Howie said.

"Why not D? I thought you really liked her," A.J. said.

"I do. I'm going to ask her to be my girlfriend," Howie said.

"So what's the problem?" Nick asked confused.

"I'm nervous. What if she rejects me? What if I make a fool of myself? What if. . .?" Howie continued.

"Yo D! Calm down. You'll be fine," Brian said.

"Yeah, D. Don't worry, Lauren really likes you," Kevin said. "I've heard her talk about you."

"Well I'm off to wake up Stacey," A.J. said innocently, walking out the door.

"Yeah right, Bone," Nick said laughing.

"Well me and Nick are headed out to turn into video game zombies," Brian said grabbing Nick.

"Whoohoo! Video games!" Nick said as they headed to his room.

"Well I'm going to call Janel and let her know the meeting's over," Kevin said pulling out his cell phone. Howie sat down on the couch and began to mindlessly watch television.

Rick's office

Ring! Ring!

"Oh that's Boo!" I said letting go of Rick.

"If that's your man, then you better answer it," Rick said.

I could tell he was a little hurt, but he tried to hide it. Rick and I had dated about four years ago. Things didn't seem to work out, but there were reasons. One because I wasn't ready to date and two because we decided that it wasn't the best idea to get involved with your boss. So we broke things off, but because of that we became better friends.

"Hello," I said.

"Hey Pumpkin," Kevin said.

"Hi Kevin," I said.

"So how did things go with Rick?" Kevin asked.

"Perfect," I said smiling at Rick. "He said I could have the next two and a half months off," I said happily.

"Wow! What did you do to make him say yes?" Kevin asked.

"Oh nothing. He owed me a couple of favors, that and he's just a really good friend," I said.

"That's good. Well, the meeting is over so you can come now. I'll be in Denise's room, which is 212. Howie's room is 208. Oh wait, don't go there. A.J.'s waking up Stacey for the next hour and a half," Kevin said.

"Oh, way too much information Boo," I said laughing. "Just tell me where Howie will be."

"He'll be in mine and Brian's room. You remember which number, right?" he questioned.

"Of course, 210. I'll be there in about 20 minutes. Bye, love you," I said.

"Love you too, Pumpkin," Kevin said.

We hung up and I was ecstatic. "I can't thank you enough Rick!"

"You're welcome. But I have to ask you for something," Rick said.

"What? Anything," I said.

"That I get to meet this guy that knows how to make you happy," he said.

I smiled and said, "No problem. But unfortunately not anytime soon."

"That's okay. But I still want to meet him," he said.

"That's a deal," I said giving Rick a big hug. "Well I better get going."

"Good luck and be careful. Hey, and don't forget about me either!" he yelled.

"Never," I said.

"I want you to e-mail me or call me to let me know how you are," he said.

"Sure. I'll keep you updated. Bye!" I said exiting his office.

At the hotel

"She'll be here in about 20 minutes with Lauren," Kevin said to Howie.

"What?" Howie asked, snapping out of his daze.

"Lauren," Kevin said.

"Oh yeah. Twenty minutes," Howie said nervously.

"Why are you so nervous, D?" Kevin asked.

"I don't know. It's just that I've finally found someone that I connect with and we happen to be on tour. Now I'll be away from her and then I'll only be able to talk to her on the phone," Howie said.

"Yeah, but you'll always have her to talk to and eventually to come home to," Kevin said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Howie said.

"Well, I have to go and talk to Denise now. So I'll see you later," Kevin said walking out the door.