A Trip in the Fall Pt. 02

As he parked his truck in the long term lot, he caught the shuttle to the terminal, checked his bag, and cleared security. As he settled into the waiting area,his mind began to wander. "Would Sarah be excited to see him? Of course she would. Would her parents like him? Now that was the big question. He knew Sarah and her mother were extremely close as she was to her siblings, but they were probably very protective because of her fame. They would want to make sure he was interested in her, not her fame." As these thoughts and others wound through his head, he heard the first call and as he approached the counter, the attendant took his ticket and said, "Mr. Baker, you have been upgraded to business, there was a couple that booked separately and so they could sit together, you were upgraded."

Brandon thanked her and moved down the gangway to the plane, finding his seat. Coach to business was a huge difference, the seats were wider and and more importantly, there was more legroom that fit Brandon's 6'2 frame. He settled in, told the flight attendant that he wouldn't want any beverages, put his headphones on and closed his eyes, hoping to catch some sleep.

Two and a half hours later, he was awakened by the pilot announcing their final descent into New Orleans. As the plane made final approach, Brandon began to pack his things, prepping to hurry off the plane, get to the rental counter so he could get his rental and get on the road to Biloxi. As the plane pulled to the gate, people started shuffling around and Brandon began to make his way off the plane, luckily he was able to deplane, use the restroom and get to the rental counter in less than ten minutes. As he was finishing up the paperwork on the car, his phone vibrated with a text from Morgan, "Hey hope you're on the ground, your parking pass and your access passes are with security, we've kept Sarah from seeing the guest list, Amanda and Max know you're coming but that's it. Look for big A/Cs and a roll up door with "Entrance" by it. You'll see the buses and I'll make sure I send you my location as I go in."

As Brandon walked to his rental car, he texted Morgan back, "Thanks, I'll let you know when I'm close."

Brandon made it out of the parking lot, onto the highway and started the 95 mile drive to Biloxi. As he made his way onto US 90 and started up the coast towards the venue, he realized that it was just about 9pm, he had lost a little bit of time due to a wreck on I-10 as he crossed Lake Pontchatrain. He texted Morgan telling her where he was.

She responded, "I'll send Max down to get you and bring you in. See you in a few"

Following Morgan's location she sent earlier, Brandon pulled up to a security booth, the guard stepped out and said, "Can I help you? This area is closed."

Brandon pulled his driver's license out, showed it to the guard, "My name's Brandon Baker, I should have a parking pass and some other things."

The guard walked back into the booth, he re-emerged a moment later with a small manilla envelope. He instructed Brandon where to go, Brandon thanked him, laid the tag on the dash and drove forward. He pulled his car in beside others just as Max was emerging from the roll up door.

Brandon got out of the car, threw his access pass around his neck and jogged up to Max, shaking his hand.

Max smiled, "Hey man! Heard you've had a little bit of excitement over the last two weeks."

"Holy shit dude, it has been crazy, I can't believe you all deal with this shit."

Max shook his head and led him into the venue, "Yeah, it's a little bit nuts, but now you're here, Sarah's gonna be stoked to see you."

"So she has no clue I'm coming?"

"Nope we all thought it'd be a nice surprise."

As they moved towards the stage, Brandon could feel the music as it vibrated in the venue. As they began to pass the tour boxes, Max said, "FYI, Sarah's parents are here, so you're going to meet them sooner rather than later. They do know you're coming."

Brandon stopped, "Seriously!? That would have been good to know!"

Max laughed, reached into a cooler grabbing a Coke, then pulled a cup and a bottle of Bulleit bourbon out and said, "Here make a drink, it'll calm you down."

Brandon poured himself a drink, took a pull, then topped it off before following Max backstage. As he got to where he could see the crowd and the stage, he was intercepted by Morgan, "You finally made it!!!" He looked past Morgan to see Sarah in her blue jeans, riding boots and blue v-neck t-shirt with the Ole Miss logo across the front.

"Yeah, ran into some traffic right outside of New Orleans."

"Well glad you're here, stay put, you need to meet some people."

Brandon took another drink from his cup and as he looked up, he saw Morgan walking back with two people who he knew were Sarah's parents and two others he assumed were her siblings. With another drink, he muttered, "Here goes nothing."

Ch. 6

As Morgan approached, Brandon decided to take the initiative, he stepped forward, extending his hand to Sarah's father, "Good evening Mr. Bixby, I'm Brandon Baker, Sarah's....well Sarah's boyfriend."

"Brandon it is nice to finally meet you, please call me Jim." He turned as his wife stepped forward, "This is my wife Susan."

Brandon reached out and shook her hand, "Mrs. Bixby, it's nice to meet you, Sarah has talked about you a bunch."

He then turned to the teenage boy and young girl behind them, "That means you must be Jackson and you must be Mia, my names Brandon and I'm a friend of your sister's". Sarah's brother reached his hand out and said hello, trying hard to give a firm handshake causing Brandon to smile.

Little Mia walked up to Brandon, looked up at him, pulled the large pink shooting muffs off her ears and shouted, "Are you her boooyyyfriend?"

Brandon and Morgan started laughing and Brandon knelt down in front of her, "Yes, I am."

Mia thought for a moment, said, "Okay!" And then walked back to the edge of the curtain so she could watch Sarah.

Brandon stood up and turned his focus back to Sarah's parents and brother, "I know that I wasn't supposed to be here until late next week, but Morgan mentioned that Sarah had been worried since the reporters and media figured out who I was, so I thought I might surprise her. I've booked a hotel room and don't want to intrude on any of your family time, I know you haven't seen her in a while."

Sarah's parents nodded, her mother looked him up and down, "Nonsense, if Sarah, Amanda, and Morgan vouch for you, you can stay at our home."

"Thank you ma'am, I appreciate that."

Sarah's dad looked on with a serious look on his face then said, "Susan, why don't you and Jack go watch the show with Mia, I'm going to talk with Brandon some more. Morgan, can you excuse us? Brandon walk with me."

Brandon and Jim walked away from the stage and back towards the hallway where Brandon had come in 10 minutes prior. As they got to a point where they could hear each other, Jim stopped, "I'm not going to beat around the bush, you have to understand where I'm coming from, Sarah's been through a lot and went from a student to a country star almost overnight. She is one of the biggest names in the industry, she had her heart broke when she found out that prick cheated on her, what are your intentions with her?"

Brandon nodded, "Mr. Bixby, a month ago I came to visit a dear friend from college who just happens to work with your daughter. Sure I thought she was beautiful, no man in his right mind would think otherwise, but what I have found is that her beauty on the outside is surpassed by her beauty inside.

Jim interrupted, "You realize how cliche you sound?"

Brandon laughed, "Yeah I do. I'll never forget seeing her with the little girl on the stage in Cincinnati and how she interacted with her. I'll never forget how she told me about drinking bourbon with you and her grandfather at your deer camp, how she talked about how hard it was to leave Mia, how choosing this over being a librarian was so hard, and a whole bunch of other things that we have talked about."

Jim nodded, "You still haven't answered my question."

"Sir, I care about your daughter a great deal. She's sweet, she's funny, she's selfless, she makes me want to be a better person because I see how she interacts with people and the world in general. Excuse my language but I don't give a shit about her fame. It's just another job, albeit a public one, just like me teaching or coaching."

Jim nodded again, "So where do you see you two going?"

"I'm not sure honestly, and that scares me because I've always been a planner. We've known each other a month, and at the risk of cliche, it feels longer. She is one of the easiest people to talk to I have ever met. If she didn't want to be a librarian, I'd be suggesting that she look into being a counselor or therapist because she just puts people at ease, and people open up to her, I'm one of those people. I don't know what the future holds, but I'm excited to find out."

Jim took a step towards Brandon, "You're alright kid, just treat her good and we will be good."

"Of course sir."

Jim laughed, slapped Brandon on the back, "Stop calling me sir, now let's go watch the show."

Jim and Brandon made their way back to the stage, as they approached Sarah's mom let out a sigh, "Thank goodness, you didn't scare him off."

Jim and Brandon both laughed and Jim said, "Nope, just had to make sure we were on the same page."

Ch. 7

Over the next half hour, they all enjoyed the show, seeing Sarah and Amanda back in their home element made the show even more energetic than normal. Numerous times they would get off stage, interacting with fans and people they knew who were on the front row. As the show began to hit the last few songs on the set list, Sarah announced that they wanted to bring a few people on stage to thank them. Amanda started first, introducing her mom, dad, older brother and his wife. They jointly thanked the tour staff and road crew, they brought Morgan out and thanked her.

After Morgan walked off stage, Sarah said, "Lastly I can't forget my family who is here tonight. My brother Jackson and sister Mia!"

Jackson picked Mia up and walked her out onto stage. Mia just ate it up, waving and smiling for everyone as the crowd cheered. Sarah took Mia from her brother, and walked her around the front of the stage so she could wave to everyone.

Setting Mia down, "Finally, I can't forget my parents Jim and Susan who have supported me and us from day one of this little adventure."

Jim and Susan walked out onto stage holding hands waving to the crowd, leaving Brandon standing in his usual spot from the previous shows, he had been making sure he stayed in the shadows so Sarah couldn't see him. As Jim and Susan reached center stage, Susan hugged Sarah, followed by Jim, who gave her a kiss on her cheek, and then whispered something in her ear. Brandon could see the confused look on her face. Next thing he knew Morgan was standing beside him.

Through giggles, Sarah stepped back to her mic, "My dad says that there is someone else in the shadows that came to see me perform. I don't know who it is honestly, mystery person, can you step out of the shadows?"

Brando looked at Morgan, she said, "Okay lover boy, that's you."

Brandon protested as he heard Sarah over the mic, "Seriously who is it?"

Amanda added while grinning, "Come on mysterious person, get out here!"

Brandon saw one of the onstage camera guys moving around the drum set coming towards him. He took a final swig from his cup, set it on the tour box, and stepped into the light that had been shining on the wing entrance. He couldn't see much because of the blinding light in his eyes, but he could hear murmurs from the crowd and maybe some cheers of encouragement.

As he took another step onto the stage he heard Sarah through her mic, "Oh my god."

As he cleared the speaker stack that obscured the crowd, he caught sight of Sarah as she put her hands over her mouth. He smiled and continued to walk towards her. She began to walk towards him and met him halfway between the edge of the stage and her mic stand. She threw her arms around him and hugged him tighter than he had ever been hugged before. She pulled back as he wrapped his arms around her waist, "What are you doing here?!"

He smiled back at her, "Thought I'd surprise you."

She hugged him again, kissing his cheek, laughed and let go, keeping a hold of his hand as she pulled him towards her mic stand. As they reached it, she said, "Folks to put rumors to rest, I'd like to introduce you to Brandon, my boyfriend." The crowd erupted as he waved to the crowd. He turned and nodded at Jim who along with the rest of Sarah's family were clapping.

As the crowd died down, Amanda said, "Alright folks, we've got one more for you!"

Sarah said to Brandon as he turned to walk off stage with her parents, "Thanks for coming, I can't believe you're here."

He smiled back, "Thanks for having me, even if you didn't know." She laughed as he exited the stage and as the chords from the first single they released were strummed.

The final song ended, but rather than take a break, the band played three more songs for an encore. As the final notes were hit, Sarah said into the mic, "Crew come take a bow, we couldn't have done this without you!" The entire crew walked onto stage, formed a line, and bowed to the cheers of the audience. As they exited and the house lights came on, Sarah and Amanda stuck around for the next half hour signing autographs and talking to people who had come to see them.

Brandon stood out of the way as the road crew began to pack up the set, talking with Morgan and Sarah's older brother. As the crowd began to thin out a little bit more, he heard, "Brandon, can you come out here?"

Brandon walked out on stage and found Sarah down on the floor talking to 2 women and 2 guys. He hopped off the stage, walked over to the group. As he got to Sarah, she grabbed him, kissing him passionately to the "Ooooos" of the group.

After the kiss ended, Sarah giggled, "Sorry, I wanted to do that on stage, but I was too shocked that you were here."

Brandon laughed, "That's fine, that occurring on stage may have given your dad a coronary."

The entire group laughed, before Sarah said, "Brandon, I'd like you to meet Lauren, her husband Mark, and Beth and her fiancé Eric. I've known Lauren and Beth since we were in kindergarten."

Brandon shook hands with the guys, and hugged the two women. They all wanted to know how they met and the details of Brandon's life. They all talked and laughed for the next 20 minutes.

The conversation ended when George appeared, shaking Brandon's hand and said, "Sarah, it's been a pleasure to drive you this year, but I'd like to get on the road to get back to Nashville in the morning. I think everything but your overnight bag with the rest of your clothes has already been packed up and will be dropped at your parent's tomorrow. Where would you like it put?"

With a hug, Sarah said, "George, you have been great and made our lives so comfortable, are you sure I can't convince you to stay for Daddy's cookout for everyone?"

"As much as I'd like to, I can't wait to see my wife."

"I understand. As for my bag, Brandon, I'm assuming you got a rental car? I think my parents left me to get Mia home to bed."

"Yeah, it's the Ford Bronco beside the bus, and your mom made me cancel my hotel reservation so I'm staying with you all."

"Really, a Bronco?"

Brandon through his arms up, "It was a fitting coincidence"

Sarah laughed, "Uh huh. George please just put the bag in Brandon's rental. I need to change before we make the drive home, it's about an hour and a half to my parents."

George thanked Sarah again, shook Brandon's hand and headed to move Sarah's bag.

The conversation wrapped up with Sarah's friends, all of them confirming that they would be at the cookout the next evening.

Sarah took Brandon's hand, and walked him towards the dressing room. Brandon stopped to use the restroom and Sarah said, "I'll change and meet you back out here in 5?"

5 minutes later, Brandon was leaning against the wall when the dressing room opened and out walked Sarah in a pair of running shorts, the infamous hoody that she stole from him and a pair of flip flops, "Ready to go?"

"Let's go!"

Ch. 8

They left the venue and walked to Brandon's rental holding hands. As they climbed in, they found Sarah's duffel in the backseat and Sarah threw her bag from the show in the back with it. They pulled out of the lot and began to make their way out of the city as Sarah gave Brandon directions.

As they cleared the city, Sarah had fallen quiet and Brandon kept driving on Route 15 as Sarah had instructed. After about 10 minutes of silence, Brandon looked over at Sarah staring out the window, rested his hand on her knee, "Penny for your thoughts?"

Sarah turned from the window and smiled at him, "It's just nice to be back home, tour life is fun and all, but it's just nice to be back in the country. Plus I'm still giddy that you're here and came to surprise me."

Brandon smiled back, "I'm glad I could make it. I felt a little bad not telling you when you were bummed earlier in the week, but I thought it would be fun to surprise you." He lightly caressed Sarah's bare thigh as she sat Indian style in the seat next to him. He absentmindedly allowed his hand to slide higher as they cruised down the dark two lane road. After another five minutes of silence, Brandon's hand had begun to reach the hem of Sarah's shorts.

With a giggle, "What do you think you're doing mister?"

Snapping from the road, Brandon looked over and realized he had two fingers under the hem of her shorts. He pulled his hand back, "Sorry, I didn't realize what I was doing."

Looking at him skeptically, "Surreeee."

Brandon tried to defend himself, but Sarah cut him off, "I didn't say stop..."

Brandon slipped his hand back to her thigh, caressing her smooth skin and slowly began to reach under her shorts which caused her to let out a sigh and a slight moan. Brandon began to caress higher but was stopped as he began to slide his fingers towards her pussy. A fabric that didn't feel like the panties that he had seen Sarah wear stopped his fingers. He looked over at her as she sighed, "They're running shorts that have a liner."

Brandon nodded, and began to caress her pussy through the liner, causing her to let out another soft moan. He could feel the heat radiating from her and as he applied more pressure, he could feel her wetness starting to soak through. As he pushed harder, Sarah began to moan a bit louder. This went on for another minute or two, the liner getting wetter and Sarah's moans getting louder. Sarah finally looked over at Brandon, "Would you just finger me already?"

Brandon looked at her, then looked at the road, "Here? I don't know the road."

Sarah moved Brandon's hand, lifted her ass off the seat, pulled her shorts down her legs to her ankles and said, "Yes here, the road is straight, now finger me!"

Having never seen the demanding side of Sarah, Brandon hesitated for a moment, causing Sarah to reach out, grab his hand and pull it back to her crotch. As he touched her, he was welcomed by bare, wet lips that were begging to be stroked. Brandon focused on the road but began to stroke Sarah's outer lips before separating them and sliding his middle finger into Sarah. As he did, she sighed, and as he began to work his finger in and out, her sighs turned to moans.

Brandon set the cruise control on the SUV and began to finger Sarah more earnestly, slipping his finger in and out of her, while keeping the ball of his hand against her clit. He felt Sarah become wetter as he sped up slightly, as she became wetter, her moans became louder, drowning out the song on the radio. Brandon kept his pace up for another minute or so and just as they came to a bend in the road, Sarah's pussy clenched Brandon's finger and she began shake as her moans were replaced by, "Yes, yes, yes." Over and over as she rode her orgasm.