It was that spark that drove Daniel to take real, practical steps in overcoming his past. It was that spark that caused him to get on yet another plane and go to Los Angeles.
He found himself at a farewell party for the road crew of Courtney's Freedom Tour. He knew the road was physically taxing on her and that this would be her last tour for a while, if not for good. She hadn't made any official announcements, but Daniel knew she was more than ready for an extended break.
He watched her at the party, thinking he could understand why. He had seen her in action backstage when he was filling in for Trevor, but he was so preoccupied with making sure he had security under control that he wasn't able to fully appreciate how very much of herself she poured into leading this group. He didn't fully grasp it until that night at the party.
He watched as Courtney captured the love and attention of her team and their guests. There was a dinner followed by an awards ceremony with trophies and gifts for the whole crew. Courtney made a touching speech about how special each of them were and how the tour wouldn't have been a success without their hard work and dedication. She was truly humble and grateful, yet at the same time, she was a strong, passionate leader.
Daniel was already in love with her before this evening ever happened, but seeing her in action with the crew put him over the top. He was so proud of her.
She finished her speech and wished them all the best, and then he watched in amazement as a couple of the tables in the back of the room began to chant.
"Freedom!
Hoo.
Freedom!
Hoo.
Freedom!
Hoo."
They shouted the word 'freedom' as a war cry, and then the word 'hoo' was said in a low, guttural tone like a bass drum, keeping the rhythm between each cry. They all stomped when they called out, making it even more dramatic.
It was a chant Courtney led backstage before every show to pump everyone up. She usually got it started, but this time the chant began in the back of the room.
Before long, the whole room was swaying side to side with the rhythm. Courtney smiled and shook her head at the fact that they wanted one last song. She put the mic to her mouth and made a confident pose like she was a rock star from way back.
"We got some cameras.
Hoo.
We got some lights.
Hoo.
We got our costumes.
Hoo.
We lookin' tight.
Hoo.
We got our dancers.
Hoo.
We got our band.
Hoo.
We got a room.
Hoo.
Sold out with fans.
Hoo.
They out there now.
Hoo.
All goin' crazy.
Hoo.
Cause they all know.
Hoo.
This show's amazing."
Daniel had seen her do that chant before, but there were a lot of people in the room who had never been present to witness it, and he watched in amazement as everyone in the room got pumped up in spite of there being no crowd waiting or show to perform.
Everyone burst into applause when they finished, and Courtney blew kisses and yelled, "I love you guys!"
"We love you Courtney!" someone yelled through the applause.
She bowed and then held her hands out as if offering them all a big hug. Her arms were still extended as she opened her hand and let the microphone drop, causing them all to yell out again.
***
"I can't believe they started the chant," Trevor said in the limo on the way home.
"I know," Gabe said. "That was crazy. That was my favorite part of the whole night—besides the steak. Did you practice that?"
"She does it with them before every show," Denise said.
"She changes it up some," Trevor said. "Sometimes she mentions the name of the town or calls out specific people, but it's similar to that every time."
"Those awards were funny too," Gabe said.
They talked about it the whole way to Courtney's house. Daniel chimed in a little, but Gabe, Denise, and Trevor were so excited that he and Courtney just let them chatter.
For the last couple of hours Courtney had given herself over to leading her team just like she did when they were on the road, so she was glad for the opportunity to be quiet. She held Daniel by the arm, resting her head on his shoulder. She noticed when they were pulling up in her driveway, and she leaned up to speak near Daniel's ear.
"Are you staying at my house?" she asked.
He turned and gave her a little smile. "Are you giving me the option not to?"
"Not really," she said. "I mean, if you really don't want to stay, then I'm not going to—" she stopped talking when Daniel leaned down to speak next to her ear.
She was sweet and tender, and she smelled like heaven to him. "Courtney," he whispered. "I really don't want to leave your side."
Daniel's words made her squeeze his arm tightly, which caused all sorts of protective, desirous feelings to course through his body. He had to have her in his life and that's all there was to it. He would work it out with his brother, or his own feelings, or whatever else he thought might get in the way. She held onto him tightly, and he realized that he wouldn't let anything get in the way.
"My things are at the hotel," he said.
Denise overheard his statement, and she chimed in. "I can send for someone to pick up your stuff if you want," she said.
"Would you, please," Courtney said.
"You staying with us?" Trevor asked.
"Of course he is," Courtney said. "I have tons of room."
Daniel knew Trevor lived at Courtney's house. His full-time protection was part of the job, and ultimately, Daniel took comfort in that, but he couldn't help but cringe when Trevor said the word 'us'. He was considering his own jealousy when the limo driver came around to open the door for them.
Trevor got out first, leaving the two couples in the backseat. "Are you guys coming in?" Courtney asked.
Denise looked at Gabe who shrugged as if it was up to her.
"We can go swimming," Courtney added.
Denise raised her eyebrows at Gabe and then looked at Courtney. "I'd have to borrow a bathing suit," she said.
"So would I, actually," Gabe said.
"Me too," Daniel added.
"I have one for you, Denise, and I'm sure Trevor's got something in there for the boys. Whata ya say?"
"I'm game," Denise said with a shrug.
By the time the couples made it into the house, Trevor had already checked things out and was standing in the kitchen chewing a bite of food.
"We're gonna swim," Courtney announced. "The boys will need to borrow some of your swim trunks if you don't mind."
"Not at all," Trevor said.
"I'm going to take care of getting your things picked up from the hotel," Denise said to Daniel. "What's your room number again?"
"604," Daniel said. "Are you sure it's not a problem? I can go get it myself."
Denise shook her head. "I'll just ask the concierge to get it packed up and send the driver back over there. Let me catch him before he leaves."
Denise took out her phone and began pushing buttons, and Courtney took her by the arm pulling her toward the bedroom.
"You can do that while we change," Courtney said. She looked at Daniel. "Trevor will hook you up with a pair of shorts," she said with a smile.
It was fifteen minutes later when Courtney and Denise finished changing into their swimsuits and making all of the arrangements to get Daniel's things brought over. Of course, they talked while they were doing that. Denise was a wonderful assistant who knew how to maintain professional boundaries, so she never asked Courtney too many questions about her personal life or feelings. Courtney wasn't much of a gabber, and Denise respected that. She was, however, curious about Daniel because she could see how very affected Courtney was by him. She asked Courtney if she planned on b
eing seen in public with Daniel, and Courtney told her that she was more than ready to go public with their relationship and was only taking it slow out of respect for Daniel.
Daniel and Gabe were waiting in the kitchen for the girls when they came downstairs. Daniel had borrowed a pair of Trevor's swim trunks that were a blue and white striped pattern. He had been wearing an undershirt under his tux, and he left it on when he changed.
Gabe hadn't done the same. He was shirtless, but Daniel felt more comfortable leaving a shirt on until they got into the pool. Courtney and Denise were both wearing swimsuits when they came downstairs, but Daniel only had eyes for one of them. She was wearing a blue one-piece number with gold accents, and she came into the kitchen smiling at him and looking like she belonged on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
"Where's Trevor?" Courtney asked.
"In his room," Daniel said. "He said he might meet us out there in a little while."
Courtney nodded as she came to stand right in front of Daniel. She looked straight at him, causing him to experience that same wave of protective desire he always seemed to get with her.
"We'll meet you guys out there," Courtney said, talking to Denise and Gabe but looking straight at Daniel.
The other two took off for the swimming pool, leaving Courtney and Daniel in the kitchen. "I'm pretty sure Gabe and Trevor couldn’t care less about looking at me, but I still wore a one-piece for you," Courtney said.
Daniel scanned her body from head to toe before making eye contact with her again. "I'm pretty sure no one can really care less about looking at you, Courtney, so I'm glad about the one-piece. Thank you."
"I'm not glad about your one-piece," she said, looking him over the same way he had done to her.
"I was thinking about taking my shirt off before we got in the pool," he said, touching his stomach.
"Thinking about it?" She asked incredulously. "I wouldn't have even suggested a swim if I would've known you were a shirt-swimmer."
He laughed at that.
Courtney didn't have to see him without a shirt. She could see the shape of his chest through this thin undershirt and knew she was going to be in trouble once he took it off.
Daniel, on the other hand, was already in trouble. He wasn't lying when he said Courtney would look beautiful in a canvas sack, and there she was in a gorgeous blue swimsuit, staring at him like he hung the moon.
Chapter 15
Courtney
Memphis, TN
It had been almost a month since Daniel surprised me by coming to California. He stayed for five days, and before he left, we made plans to see each other again the following month when I would travel to Memphis for his little sister's graduation.
When we made the arrangements, I thought I would be so busy that a month would fly by, but I was wrong. I had been busy, but that didn't change the fact that I went to bed every night wishing I had seen Daniel that day and counting the minutes until I finally got to.
Trevor flew to Memphis with me once it finally came time for my trip. The plan was that he would escort me there and then fly to his hometown of Buffalo, New York where he would take a well-deserved vacation.
I was planning on staying in Memphis for two weeks, and already I was dreading the time when my trip would be over and I would again have to say goodbye to Daniel. I had talked to his little sister, Ivy, on the phone a time or two during the last month, but she had no idea that I was coming to town or that I was planning on going to her graduation.
Daniel was close to his family and I knew they were aware that something was going on between us, but I didn't know exactly how much he had told them. The media hadn't found out about us either. This was one of the only bonuses of our relationship being long-distance. I was glad for Daniel that we had taken things slow, but I was more than ready for everyone to know about us, and I hoped the paparazzi would catch wind of me going to Memphis so that we could be photographed together.
"Don't be nervous," Trevor said as he handed me the bag he took out of the overhead compartment.
"How do you know I'm nervous?" I asked.
"You picked at your fingernails during the whole flight."
"I did?" I glanced down at my own hand realizing that he was right. My fingernails were all really short.
"You shouldn't be nervous," Trevor continued. "The Bishops are wonderful people, and they're really going to love you."
"You think?" I asked as we started to exit the plane.
"Who wouldn't?" he asked.
We paused our conversation to respond to the flight attendant who was thanking us as we walked off of the plane.
Trevor and I were professionals at navigating airports together, and we stuck right by each other all the way through the terminal toward baggage claim. I knew Daniel would be waiting there for me, and I got more and more antsy the closer we got. I heard a couple of people whisper my name while we were walking, but I had on glasses and my fake, curly hairpiece so I just pretended not to hear them.
Denise was a master at planning my travel arrangements, and I knew I wouldn't have to wait for my bag to come around on the carousel. There would, no doubt, be an attendant standing by to deliver it to me.
Normally, Trevor and I would find the person who was holding our bags and make our way over to them before scooting out of the airport. This time, I didn't care about my bags. This time, I was only looking for one person, and that was Daniel Bishop.
I had already begun scanning the room when we were halfway down the escalator.
"There's Daniel," Trevor said, seeing him first.
"Where?"
He pointed, and I glanced in that direction to find Daniel standing twenty or thirty feet from the bottom of the escalator. He had on a baseball cap, which was why it took me a second to find him. It was the first time I had ever seen him wearing one of those, and I smiled at how handsome he looked in it. He smiled back at me, and I could see his perfect white teeth even though there was what seemed like a crazy, unreasonable distance between us.
He had on dark jeans and a baby blue T-shirt, and I was so excited to see him that I unintentionally began bouncing up and down in this shaky, jerky motion. There were people in front of us on the escalator, and I felt like I wanted to hurl my body over them so that I could get to Daniel quicker.
"Oh my gosh," Trevor said, teasing me. "You better calm down, or he's going to think you like him."
I smiled and squinted at Trevor.
"I see your bags," he said, nudging his chin in the direction of the baggage carousel. "I'll go get them for you and meet you guys in a minute."
"Thank you," I said.
I grabbed his hand and gave it a little squeeze before stepping off of the escalator.
I ran into Daniel.
I hadn't planned on doing that, but there was nothing I could do to stop myself once my feet hit the ground. Thankfully, he came toward me as well, and we closed the distance in no time at all. He caught me in his arms, literally sweeping me off my feet. Both of us had on baseball caps, and our faces came so close together that the bills got in the way. Daniel held me in mid-air with one arm around my waist while he took the other hand and swiftly switched his hat so that it was facing backwards. He smiled when he got it into position and then proceeded to place excited kisses all over the side of my face and neck. I giggled as he did that and then set me back on my feet. I kept my arms wrapped around his neck, stretching upward to remain as close to him as possible.
"I misssssssed yooooouuuu," I moaned in his ear before placing several kisses on his neck.
"I missed you too," he said. He leaned to the side so that he could avoid my cap when he ducked to put a quick kiss right my lips.
"That was the longest month ever," I said, wrinkling my nose at him as I grabbed the sides of his gorgeous face.
I flexed my hands, letting my fingertips rub his cheeks. He looked like he hadn't shaved in a couple of weeks, and the short stubble was now long enough to feel soft to t
he touch.
"You got some fuzz," I said.
"Whatcha think?" he asked, grabbing his own jaw.
"I think it's so handsome."
Trevor came to stand next to us with my bags. "You guys have an audience, just so you know," he said discreetly. "A few people are taking pictures over there. I didn't know if you were planning on standing here and being in love all day or what."
I smiled at Trevor and let go of Daniel so that I could hug him. "You're the best," I said. "Thank you for getting my bags."
"You're welcome," Trevor said, hugging me back. "I'm glad you're in good hands." He reached out to give Daniel a guy-hug with a hearty slap on the back.
"I hope you have a great time with your family," I said.
"Yeah, enjoy your vacation," Daniel said.
Trevor smiled. "I will. Tell Gray and the rest of the gang 'hi' for me. I'll see you both in a couple of weeks."
Trevor waved to us and then turned to head back into the terminal so that he could catch his next flight. I saw a group of people standing near the baggage claim who were staring at me and whispering and pointing like they were working up the nerve to approach me. I loved and appreciated my fans, but I knew from past experiences that moments like these could easily turn chaotic. Daniel saw my expression shift and he grabbed my bags in one hand and wrapped his other arm around my shoulder, urging me toward the door.
"I've got someone out here for you to meet," he said as we made our way outside. "I hope you don't mind."
"Who is it?" I asked.
We had already stepped out onto the curb by the time I got the question out of my mouth, and Daniel gestured to a truck that was parked right in front of us. The driver smiled and leaned over to open the door, and my heart began pounding because instantly, I realized who it was. He was so ruggedly handsome that I hardly noticed the scar that ran down the right side of his face. Owen.
"This is my brother, Owen," Daniel said, opening the door more fully so that I could climb in. I stepped into the truck while Daniel went to work putting my bags into the back of it.
So Happy Together (Bishop Family Book 4) Page 10
