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Jo and Lina came back to the house around half past six after a great afternoon, with heaps of bags filled with clothes, make up and loads of other stuff. Nick and Alex sat, suspiciously innocent-looking on the stairs, and rushed towards them, offering to help carry their bags. Jo and Lina exchanged confused looks, but loaded all of their stuff on the boys. Nick dragged Lina up the stairs, while Alex and Jo remained standing at the foot of it. They heard the door to Lina's room close.


"Alex, what's going on?" Jo asked.

"You said you wanted to talk. Let's talk tonight. I'll carry these upstairs for you. Get ready, then meet me in the backyard."

"But..."

"Yes, bring your butt. Come on now." He started walking up the stairs, and she followed him. When she got to her room she showered, then put on her new baby-blue dress, that followed her curves from the strapless top to the flowing hem of the skirt, that ended half way down her thigh. She put her hair up in a bun, letting a few strands frame her face. A little lipgloss and a pair of black strappy sandals perfected her look. She took a deep breath, then opened her door, heading downstairs. As she came out on the patio, what she saw made her breathless. Alex, with some good help from Nick, had made the entire backyard gleam with candles. A blanket was spread out on the grass by the pool, and there sat Alex. He'd changed his clothes, he was wearing a simple black cotton shirt and a pair of light blue jeans. He had a black beanie on his head, and when he saw her he got a look in his eyes that almost made her trip over her own feet. He got up as she came closer, took her hand and smiled.

"You look absolutely stunning."

She smiled back, a little bit shaky. "Thanks. So do you."

"Thank you. You hungry?" He pointed at the basket that stood on the blanket, and sat down, pulling her down with him.

"Starving, actually. Shopping does that to me."

He laughed. "Well, it's nothing special, just some grilled chicken and potatoe salad." He picked out plates, cutlery and beautiful crystal glasses. They ate, talking about everything and nothing. When they both were full, he moved their empty plates to the side, filled her glass with more Sprite. Then he took her hand. "You wanted to talk. Spill."


"Well. I did. And I do. Alex, I just don't know how to handle this. You know what happened before I left Sweden."

"Do you still love him?"

"Well... A part of me will always love him, I guess. But I can't be with him. He didn't propose to me because he wanted to marry me. He proposed me to stop me from going. When I look back, I can't help but wonder what had happened if I hadn't talked about getting married. But on the other hand, I'm here now. I have met you," she ended with a sigh.

"You have. And what about me?"

"I like you. I could fall for you."

"Then why don't you?" He smiled, but his eyes were serious.

"Why? Because I don't know you. I don't know if I can trust you. I've read the tabloids, heard the gossip. I know it's not all true, but I don't know what is, and what isn't."

"You don't know if you can trust me, still the very first day we met, you told me loads about yourself, including the boyfriend-story. You know me better now. We've talked, we've kissed."

"Yeah, but still... We're nowhere close to really knowing eachother."

"Did you know him, when you fell for him?"

"That's different."

"Why? I might be a famous person, but I'm just a man. You don't see Brian as less trustworthy just because he's famous, do you?"

"I don't. But your story is different than his."

"Oh, the whole addiction-thing?"

"Partly, yes. You're known as the bad boy, a womanizer, a..."

"Yeah, I am, but the media picture of me is a whole lot different than who I really am. How can I get you to trust me? You won't give me a chance. And the alcoholic part, 'cause that was what you were going to say next, right? I work my twelve-step program. It's hard, but still I'm doing it. I'm not who I used to be."

"I understand that. And I'm sorry. It's just not easy for me to trust people."

"Well, you're just going to have to try, because I want you in my life." Before she got a chance to say anything, he softly turned her head, with his hand on her cheek, and kissed her, soft and sweet.


The rest of the night they spent out in the dark, candlelit garden, talking, and kissing. He told her stories from when he was growing up, the tours with the boys, the years of drugs and alcohol, and how he'd reached his breaking point.

"Oh I know this story," she giggled. "I saw you on Oprah. Liked those pants."

"Hey, those are one of my favourites."

She kept giggling.

"Well, now you know my stories. Tell me some of yours. Come here." He put a couple of pillows behind him, laid down and pulled her down as well, putting her head to rest on his shoulder.

Jo, still giggling, said: "Oooh, Lay Down Beside Me."

He laughed and sang a couple of lines from the song. "If you lay down, Lay down beside me, You can get all inside me, And I can get..." He stopped singing, and she laughed.

"Shy, are you?"

"Nope, but a true gentleman. And a true gentleman never does anything besides this on a first date." He kissed her again, her world tuned out, and the only thing that was left was his mouth, soft when it met hers, and his muscular body pressing against hers. They lay silent, her body shaking against his.

"Freezing, huh?" he asked, and without waiting for her answer he pulled another blanket around them. They talked about her, her friends and family until both of them fell asleep at dawn