The ride started out exciting as they drove through Pennsylvania and into Ohio. The landscape was beautiful at this time of year. Andrea was grateful that Brent drove so that she could take in the colors and textures of the foliage as it exploded into a multitude of reds, yellows, oranges, and browns. Some of the more red Maples looked as though they were on fire! Andrea took the opportunity to start going through Brent's fan mail. He looked over at her as she started to open some envelopes and rolled his eyes.

"You aren't going to like it." He warned. She looked over at him.

"Why?" She asked. He shrugged and made a face.

"Well, some of those broads send some pretty sick stuff." She frowned and pulled the first letter out of the envelope. It was a teenage girl expressing her love for him and his music. It was innocent. She held it up to him.

"Ha! First one and it's good!" He just smiled at her.

"Keep going babe." She opened another one, again, a girl expressing her 'love.' She held it out to him in victory. He just chuckled. She found an envelope with pictures in it and opened it. She looked at the pictures before the letter and was shocked to find a photo of a woman, spread eagle on a bed completely nude. And she wasn't pretty or skinny. Andrea made a face as if she'd just eaten a bug.

"Ewww, that's gross!" She said and held the picture up to him. He glanced at it and looked away.

"Oh God, Annie, I'm driving!!" He said pretending to swerve. "You see, I told you. Now don't even read the letter because it will make you want to throw up. Stop reading those letters, I'm telling you, they are no good." She ripped up the picture, crumpled up the letter without reading it and tossed it behind her. She kept opening them much to his protest. All the good ones she put off to the side and the bad, she crumpled up and tossed behind her. He glanced back at the pile of balled up paper on his back seat. "Damn, you'd better make sure you get that shit out of here when we get home or there'll be hell to pay." She giggled at him and focused on the letter she was reading. It was poetry from a young man in Illinois. "I mean it Annie!" He said loudly. She waved him away.

"Okay, okay!" She said and read the poem. "Hey, this is really good!" She said showing him the letter. He glanced at it and then back at the road. "You are definitely writing to him." She set the letter aside. He sighed heavily. It was making him angry that she insisted he respond to these people. Dammit, he responds every night while in concert, doesn't he? He talks to each and every one of them, all at the same time, but still ... It counted in his book! He ignored her and kept driving. By nightfall they were into Indiana. They stopped at a motel for the night and had a bite to eat before retiring to their room. Brent showered while Annie sat on the bed engulfed in envelopes and letters. He came out of the bathroom, damp and naked, took one look at her and shook his head.

"What the fuck are you doing?" He asked planting his hands on his hips. She looked up at him and smiled. He wished he had a picture of that, he would put it on the Foul website! "It's either me or those letters Annie, you make the choice." She looked at him, then down at the letters, then back up at him. He growled, stomped over to the bed, lifted up the covers and shook all the paper off the bed. They flew everywhere, some of them floating down slowly to the floor. She opened her mouth and gasped loudly.

"Oh my God, look what you've done!" He grinned and slid in under the covers. She jumped up. "You've mixed them all up, now I'll have to sit and separate them again. Brent!!" She knelt down and started to pick up the papers. He lay there and laughed at her. She wasn't laughing, though, she didn't find it the least bit funny. "Go ahead and laugh but you've really pissed me off." She spat angrily at him. He laughed harder. She picked up the letters and then stood up with them in both hands. Seeing her standing there with all that paper in her fists made him snort. She stalked over to the bed and threw them in his face. He pushed them away and then grabbed her and threw her down on the bed. She punched at him and he held her tight. He kissed her and she held her lips tightly closed. He burst out laughing again and threw his head back. She pushed at him. He howled and then bent down and bit her neck. She yelped. He kissed her again and this time she warmed to him. She was still angry and let him know it.

"Ok, seriously Annie ..." He cleared his throat and hushed the giggles that welled inside him. "You go ahead and go through the letters. Find some you really think I ought to see and I'll look at them. But, listen to me now, I will not write back to these people." She smiled brightly for she had won him over.

"What if I write the letters and you just sign them?" She asked cautiously. She was pushing him now and she knew it but she had to try ... He sighed and pressed his lips together. He searched her face with his cool blue eyes.

"Ok, whatever. Just make sure there are only a few." She hugged him.

"Only a few per day. Okay, got it!" She said and giggled. He shook his head at her and then bent down for more kissing ....

They got home mid-afternoon the next day. Andrea checked the messages, there were 12! Brent's parents called sounding somewhat anxious to talk to him, the lawyer called stating there were several delays due to the Federal court not being able to decide where to try Alex, Greg called a few times sounding awfully upset, Terri called, Carl called ... and on and on. Andrea picked up the phone and prepared to make a call but Brent grabbed it from her hand. She gave him a look.

"What the hell are you doing?" She asked. He held the phone behind his back.

"Me first." He said. She held her hand out for it.

"It's my phone!" She said. "I'm calling Terri." He shook his head and pointed with the phone to the front door.

"You aren't calling anybody until you get your sorry ass outside and clean that shit out of the back seat of my car!!" He hollered playfully. She grinned at him.

"What'll you give me if I do?" She teased.

"I'll tell you what I'll give you if you don't!!!" He said turning his back on her and dialing the phone. She kicked the seat of his pants and he turned around quickly and glared at her. She turned and fled out the door. She came back a moment later to grab a paper bag and Brent was talking to his Mom. He was frowning. She wondered what was going on but thought she'd better get all those crumpled letters and ripped up pictures out of his back seat. While she was feeling around on the floor for scraps she found a condom in a packet. She pulled it out, it was, of all things a FOUL condom! She laughed and stuffed it in her pocket. If he'd had been wearing that she wouldn't be in this predicament. She brought the paper bag in the house and stuffed it in the fireplace. Brent was pacing the floor, phone in hand, all the while saying "You're kidding? No way! You're kidding?" She stood in front of him and frowned.

"What?" She mouthed. He held his hand up to her and then one finger which meant wait a minute. She sighed and brought her bag into the bedroom where she proceeded to unpack it. She heard him talking loudly out in the other room and the curiosity about what was happening was killing her. She came back in the room and stood in front of him again. He grabbed the front of her shirt and pulled her to him. He held the phone away from his mouth, leaned close to her ear and whispered, "Craig's fiance is pregnant." Then he released her. She made a surprised face. How about that? The brother's are going to be Dads around the same time! He frowned and with his finger slid it across his throat. Her face went from happy to sad. He waved his hand as if to tell her not to be sad. He pulled her to him again and pressed his lips to her ear. "She may lose the baby, she was beaten up." He said softly and released her. She felt anger well up inside her. Certainly Craig wouldn't have done that! But who would? She wished he had never said anything in the first place, now she wanted to know the whole thing and he wouldn't tell her until he was off the phone. She left the room and busied herself sorting laundry. Both she and Brent would have clothes that needed to be washed and she thought it would keep her occupied while he talked. She heard him stop talking and came into the bedroom. While she fiddled with the clothes he sat on the bed and told her the whole story.

"So, she is on complete bed rest for at least a week. Craig's beside himself. Mom and Dad are going over there today to see if there's anything they can do to help Mandie. Wow, I didn't know she was pregnant. And Craig didn't know either until after the fight." Andrea sat down on the bed next to Brent.

"And you thought your life was crazy!" She said shaking her head. He put his arm around her and hugged her tightly. He realized then how quickly things could change and he would be back in the rocking boat he was in before he met Andrea. Up until this moment he was afraid to marry her, afraid to commit to just one woman. After hearing that story from Craig, Brent decided it was time to own up to his feelings and his responsibilities -- he was going to go ring shopping right after Andrea left for work Monday. He kissed her and pulled her backwards onto the bed ....

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