Lance and Martin 13

Chapter 13

Lance forced himself to get up early and get to the studio on time. He would rather have spent the day with Martin and Kaylie, but knew he had work to do. The morning proceeded quickly as he recorded his vocals for a number of their new songs.

Around noon, Josh and the other producer, Dave, called for a break. Since the building cafeteria was closed they decided to head across the street to a small café. As they reached the lobby, someone else was entering the studio building. Lance looked up and saw AJ and Kevin.

Lance greeted AJ and managed to say 'hello' to Kevin. Before he could follow Josh and Dave, Kevin spoke up.

"Lance, could I talk to you for a minute?" he asked seriously.

Lance sighed, but nodded. He knew this had to be resolved. And although he was still bothered, more hurt than angry, by what Kevin had done, he couldn't carry a grudge since everything had worked out for him.

AJ glanced from one to the other. "No bloodshed, understand?" he said with his twisted humor. Lance was again reminded why AJ and Chris got along so well.

Lance grinned. "Promise Alex." Kevin nodded. They waited until AJ continued up to the studio Kevin and he had booked.

Kevin stood staring down at the floor. "I'm sorry Lance." He shrugged and looked up. "I fucked up; no excuses. I really wasn't thinking about anyone but myself and how lonely I was. I am sorry I hurt you," he said sincerely.

Lance stared at Kevin for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. You're forgiven. Just don't do it again. And you also owe Martin an apology."

Kevin looked intently at Lance then smiled. "So things worked out for you?" he asked.

Lance grinned. "Yeah. It took a few days before he would talk to me. But things are really great now." He became serious again. "But I mean it Kevin. Because of Chris and AJ, the two groups spend time together. And now that means Martin will be spending time with all of us too. He deserves an apology. And no more flirting with my man!"

Kevin nodded. "I promise, Lance."

Lance smiled again. "Good. Now I'm going to go join Josh and Dave for some lunch, so Josh can interrogate me. Say hi to the guys for me." Kevin returned the smile and walked towards the elevator. Lance continued out the door.

Martin spent the day showing Kaylie around the city. They stopped at the restaurant for a few minutes while Martin checked with his assistant managers. From there, Martin pulled out a city map and they drove around, revisiting some of the places Lance had shown him, and discovering some new places together. They both agreed to leave a visit to Disney until later in the month.

They had a fun day, and Martin enjoyed spending the time really getting to know his daughter again. Late in the afternoon, they stopped at a grocery store and got some of Kaylie's favorites. They were both tired, but happy by the time they got home.

Kaylie sat down in front of the television while Martin fixed a light dinner for them. They had nibbled all day so neither was very hungry.

Martin was just putting the food on the table when Kaylie came in. "Hey Dad, they just showed a commercial on TV saying that the Backstreet Boys were going to be performing at Disneyland in a couple of weeks. Could you call and see if you can get tickets?" she asked excitedly.

Martin grinned. "I thought you liked *Nsync?" he asked as they sat down.

Kaylie made a face at her dad. "Both are my favorite," she declared.

He laughed. "Okay. I'll see what I can do after dinner," he promised.

After dinner, Martin kept his promise and called the box office. The tickets had only gone on sale that morning for the Backstreet concert, but they were already sold out. He hated to disappoint Kaylie. He had just hung up when the phone rang. Martin answered it. "Hello?"

"Hey gorgeous," a deep voice said.

Martin laughed. "Hey yourself, beautiful." He walked out to the couch and sat down. Kaylie sat down on the floor and started flipping through the TV channels. "How was the studio today?" he asked.

Lance made a face Martin couldn't see. "It was okay. We don't normally work weekends at this stage of recording. So it was strange being there with the place almost empty. Josh pumped me for information about our trip, but I didn't give any details! " He paused. "And I ran into AJ and Kevin," he added.

"Oh?" Martin wasn't sure how to respond.

"Kevin apologized to me, and wants to apologize to you too," Lance added.

Martin looked over at Kaylie and a thought came to him. "Hmmm. Did you know Backstreet have an upcoming concert at Disney? Kaylie wanted me to try to get tickets. I called but they said they were sold out," Martin commented.

Lance laughed. "Perfect. I think that's the least you deserve. I know, I'll give you his number and you can call him, okay?"

Martin laughed. "Sounds good. I'm not really mad at him, but a little groveling might be good." Lance gave Martin the number and he wrote it down. "I'll call him tonight," Martin promised. "I miss you James," he added. "Do you think you could come here or to the restaurant tomorrow for dinner?" Even a couple of hours would be better than not seeing Lance at all.

"I should be able to," Lance said. "What about you? You're not taking the entire month off are you? What are you going to do with Kaylie while you have to work?" Lance asked.

Martin looked at Kaylie who was occupied by the TV. "I was just going to work half shifts. Kaylie can stay in the office. I was going to hook up a TV for her there," Martin explained.

Lance was quiet for a moment. "Martin, I might have an idea. Let me check a couple of things and get back to you. I'll call you tomorrow and let you know when I'll be at the restaurant, okay?"

"Sounds good. Love you," Martin said softly.

"I love you too, Martin, so much. I'll see you tomorrow," Lance replied. "Bye."

"Bye." Martin hung up. He looked at the number Lance had given him. May as well get it over with. He dialed the new number.

"Hello?"

"Hi. Is this Kevin?" No response. "Lance gave me your number. This is Martin Reed."

"Oh Martin! Yeah. Hi. This is Kevin." Kevin stuttered out. "I guess Lance told you we ran into each other today huh?"

Martin grinned, hearing Kevin's nervousness. "Yeah, he mentioned it. He said you wanted to talk to me."

"I did. I do. I wanted to apologize for my behavior at Justin's party," Kevin rushed out. "I had no right to force myself on you like I did. It was stupid and I don't have any excuse. I just hope you'll accept my apology."

Martin looked at Kaylie. She was so engrossed in the program she was watching she didn't realize who her dad was talking to. "I'll forgive you Kevin, on one condition."

"What?" Kevin asked hesitantly.

"My ten-year-old daughter just arrived yesterday to spend the month with me. For some strange reason, she wants to go to some concert at Disney in a couple of weeks."

Before Martin could continue, Kevin spoke. "Done! You have a ten-year-old daughter? Wow! That's wonderful. I look forward to meeting her," Kevin said sincerely.

Martin laughed. "I'm sure she'll be happy to meet you too. By the way Kevin, I forgave you days ago. James and I just thought a little groveling was deserved," Martin confessed.

Kevin laughed loudly. "I should have known. Anyway, you still have tickets to our concert. I'll make sure you get three, so Lance can come too!" he added.

Martin shook his head and laughed again. "I'm sure James will appreciate the thought. I'll let you go Kevin. It was actually nice talking to you. I'm glad we worked this out."

"Me too, Martin. Take care and I'm sure I'll see you around," Kevin replied then hung up.

Martin hung up the phone and looked at Kaylie. "Kaylie?"

She turned to look at him. "Yeah Dad?"

"You still want to go to the Backstreet concert?" he asked.

He could see the hope and excited cross her face. "I thought they were sold out?" she said, having heard the first call her dad had made.

He nodded. "Yeah, the box office was sold out. But James gave me another number to call and I was able to get us tickets!" he said.

"Yahoo!" she shouted and leapt over to hug Martin. "Thanks Dad!" she said as she kissed his cheek. "So that Kevin guy you were talking to had tickets?" she asked.

Martin smiled. Kaylie hadn't figured it out yet. "Yeah. Maybe you've heard of him? He's tall, dark hair, greenish-blue eyes and he sings?"

Kaylie's eyes widened in awe. "You…you mean Kevin Richardson?" she asked in shock. Martin nodded. "Wow! You know a lot of famous people Dad," she observed.

Martin hugged her. "Not a lot, just a few. So you want to watch that movie before bed?" he asked, changing the subject.

Martin and Kaylie were able to lounge around the next morning. Martin was scheduled to work noon till five at the restaurant. About ten-thirty, the apartment buzzer rang, and Martin answered it.

"Hello?"

"Hi Martin, this is Chris," a high-pitched voice said. Martin immediately recognized it. Then his thoughts turned to Lance.

"Is everything okay Chris?" he asked in concern.

"Oh, yeah. Everything is fine. Can we come up?" Chris asked.

"Sure." Martin pushed the button to unlock the door. Then he turned to find Kaylie. She was just finishing getting dressed. "Hey Kaylie," Martin said as he gently knocked on her bedroom door. "You about ready? We have some unexpected guests coming up," he said.

Kaylie opened the door. She was running a brush through her curly hair. "Sure Dad. Who's here?" she asked.

"Um, some of my special friends," he suggested. Her eyes widened. "Try to remember, they are just like James okay. Just regular guys." Kaylie nodded.

Martin walked back through the apartment to the door and opened it just as Chris was about to knock. They smiled at each other.

"Hey Martin, good to see ya," Chris greeted him and held out his hand. Martin shook it.

"You too Chris," Martin replied. He looked at the group of people with Chris. He smiled at AJ and Nick. Then looked at the three kids with them. "Well, I recognize AJ and Nick, but I'm afraid you'll have to introduce the girls and boy," Martin said as he held the door open so they could all enter.

Martin followed them in and noticed Kaylie sitting in a chair pretending to read a book. He grinned.

"Kaylie, I want you to meet some friends of mine," Martin said. Kaylie looked up and smiled broadly, but managed not to squeal or scream. Martin introduced the men first. "Kaylie, this is Chris, AJ and Nick. Guys, my daughter Kaylie."

Chris walked over and held out his hand. "Nice to meet you Kaylie," he said. She blushed, and smiled as she shook his hand. AJ and Nick repeated the gesture.

Chris looked at the three kids they'd brought with them. "Now its my turn. This is my sister, Taylor, and Justin's little brother Jonathan," he said indicating two of the children. "And the one beside Nick, is Britney's younger sister Jamie Lynn."

Martin shook hands with the two girls and the boy. Kaylie followed shyly and said hi to each one. They were all about the same age.

Chris finally explained the reason for the visit. "Well, we had made plans to go to the Water Park today, and wondered if Kaylie would like to join us?" He looked at Kaylie, then Martin. "Personally, I would think it wouldn't be much fun to sit inside and watch TV today. It's a great day outside."

Martin realized that this was part of the idea Lance had mentioned on the phone the night before.

He looked at Kaylie. "What do you think honey?" he asked.

"Can I Dad?" she asked earnestly.

He grinned. "Sure. If you're sure you want to spend the day with kids your own age and these three old men," he added.

"Ha! You're one to talk," Chris quipped. Martin laughed.

"Why don't you go pack your backpack, with your swimsuit, and a towel? Make sure you take some sunscreen."

"I'll help," Jamie Lynn offered.

"Me too," the other two said simultaneously.

Kaylie smiled and the four ran down the hall. Martin looked at the men. "I see James has been busy," he commented.

Chris shrugged. "He called me last night and all he talked about was you, and Kaylie. We already had these plans, so it was no trouble adding one more girl. We also have a couple of security guys with us too."

Martin smiled. "Well, thanks anyway." He looked at the Backstreet men. "So how are you guys doing? I haven't seen you since the party, and we never really had a chance to talk."

"We're good," Nick replied.

"Yeah. I hear you're coming to our concert in a couple of weeks," AJ added with a grin.

Martin laughed. "So you heard about that huh? Well, I'm just glad there are no hard feelings."

The kids returned, laughing and talking.

"Can we go, Chris?" Taylor asked.

Chris smiled at his sister. "Yeah, just a sec." He looked at Martin. "We'll bring Kaylie by the restaurant around six, okay? James is planning on getting there for five," he added.

Martin smiled. It would give him some time alone with Lance. "Sounds good." He pulled out his wallet and gave Kaylie some money. "Have fun, okay? And make sure you stay with these guys!"

Kaylie nodded and hugged Martin. "Promise Dad. See ya!"

He watched as the group left the apartment. The elevator door closed and Martin walked back into his apartment in time to hear the phone ring.

"Hello?"

"Martin? Its James," Lance said. "I wanted to tell you what I arranged before they get there," Lance said. He sounded out of breath, and Martin had to force himself not to laugh.

"They? You wouldn't mean Chris, AJ and Nick would you?" Martin asked.

Lance was quiet, for a moment. "Oh. I guess they are already there?" he asked.

Martin finally laughed. "Been and gone sweetie. It was nice of you to think of it and I'm sure Kaylie will have fun today."

"Are you angry?" Lance asked.

"Angry? Why?" Martin asked in confusion.

"For making plans for Kaylie without telling you," Lance said.

"James, we did discuss it," Martin replied. "And you said you had an idea last night. I figured it was planning something for Kaylie to do while I was at work. I think its great. And I'm sure Kaylie appreciates it too. So don't worry, alright?"

Lance sighed. "Okay. I guess I better get back to work. I'll see you tonight at five," Lance added.

Martin smiled. "Look forward to it. Have a good day. Love you."

"Love you too," Lance said before hanging up.

Martin finished getting ready, and headed out for the restaurant. He had a brief meeting with his assistant managers and was please to find everything running smoothly. He'd gotten lucky finding Lindsay, Bethany and Cameron. They worked well together and with all of the staff.

He was just finishing talking with Cameron when he noticed three customers walk in. He smiled and shook his head. Cameron turned to see what he was looking at.

"What is it with this place and boy bands," he asked.

Martin just laughed and looked Cameron. Then he had a thought. Cameron was blond, thirty-four, single and more importantly, gay. "Want to meet them?" he asked.

Cameron looked at Martin in surprise. "You know them?" he asked. He hadn't been at the restaurant when Brian had come with JC.

Martin nodded. "Yup. Come on. You should know them anyway so there are no problems in the future." They left the office and walked towards the front where Brian, Howie and Kevin were standing. Martin intercepted the waiter walking to the front. "I'll get these gentlemen, Adam."

Martin smiled at the singers. "This is a pleasant surprise, guys." He picked up three menus. "Follow me and we'll get you seated." Martin led the way to a secluded section, and a table for four. He set the menus down and turned to the singers. He shook hands with each of them. "This is one of my managers, Cameron Dalton. Cameron let me introduce you to Brian Littrell, Howie Dorough, and Kevin Richardson." Martin looked intently at Kevin then flicked his eyes towards Cameron a couple of times, before grinning. Kevin got the idea. "I'll let you take a look at the menu for a few minutes, then Cameron will take your orders."

Martin turned to leave, but Kevin grasped his arm. "Here," Kevin said, holding out an envelope. Martin took the tickets. "And thanks," Kevin added. Martin smiled.

"No problem Kevin. Enjoy your meals," Martin added before leaving. He returned to the office to finish looking over the books. It was over an hour later that he stopped and stretched. He glanced at the clock, surprised to see how much time had passed. Martin decided to check and see if the singers were still there.

He walked into the restaurant and towards where the singers had been. They were gone. Looking around, he spotted Cameron talking to a customer by the bar. He waited until the customer left before approaching Cameron.

"So how are things?" Martin asked.

Cameron turned to look at Martin. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Cameron said with a grin.

Martin tried to look innocent. "Did what?"

Cameron held out a piece of paper with a number on it. Martin recognized the number as Kevin's. He grinned. "Well, you're lonely, he's lonely. So why not?"

Cameron nodded. "He told me what went down between you. He said he learned his lesson," Cameron added.

Martin smiled. "Good. So just have fun, and see what happens, okay?" Cameron agreed.