by Ember Davis
Cole explained at Thanksgiving that they switch up their opening bands and find regional up and coming acts to open for them along the tour. This tour they have 5 different opening bands, which might sound like a lot, but they like giving an opportunity to new bands that could use a break.
It’s kind of sweet, a way for them to give back and use their fame to help others. It wasn’t that long ago that they were begging for gigs just to get their name and their music out there and getting little to no pay. The local Denver band they found is a little more grunge punk, Pedantic Anthology; none of us had heard of them before.
The kids from PA stop in their tracks when they see Beckett, their eyes widen as they look around the room and take in our large group with the guys of SO sprinkled amongst us. Since they’re local they might know who we are; totally not something I’m used to. I can’t imagine getting used to it any time soon.
A kid with a shaved head who is shirtless and wearing ripped up skinny jeans sputters, “You’re…you’re Beckett Banks.”
Beckett looks embarrassed for a moment before he smiles and nods, “Yeah, that’s me.”
Booker laughs at the wide eyes and gaping mouths on the guys of Pedantic Anthology. He mutters, “I thought Walsh had the lockdown on fangirling out.” Walsh rolls his eyes, but he can’t hide the sheepish grin on his face. Booker shakes his head and the guys from PA start to get their shit together, just slightly. “Okay, let’s get the introductions out of the way. First, this is our opening band for this part of the tour, Pedantic Anthology. We told you all about them at Thanksgiving; they’re a local Denver band. The guys are Sawyer,” he points to the kid with a shaved head who almost lost his mind when he recognized Beckett, “Logan, Kash and Asher.”
Booker then goes around and introduces our big group. Even though he just met us a few days ago, he doesn’t miss a beat; it warms my heart and solidifies that these rock stars belong as part of our family. Zeke gives me a little squeeze and when I meet his eyes, he smirks at me like he knows my thoughts. When Zeke’s eyes shift back over my shoulder, his eyes narrow so I turn my head and notice Kash checking me out.
Amelia notices and throws her head back and laughs. She admonishes Kash, “Don’t let that man bun fool you, Zeke will straight up kick your ass. Olivia is his girl.”
Kash blanches for a moment but recovers quickly as his eyes slide up and down Amelia. She arches her eyebrow in response. I barely contain my eye roll because it’s obvious Kash is a cocky bastard; I bet he’s the guitarist. He’s not a bad looking guy either, so it’s not like he doesn’t necessarily have a reason to be cocky. He’s 6’2”, which would be tall in most rooms, but in this one he’s one of the shortest of the bunch. He’s got a swimmer’s body which he’s showing off in black leather pants and a plain white shirt. His sandy blond hair is dark with sweat and his blue eyes are piercing. Yeah, he’s not bad looking but Amelia only has heart eyes for Beckett. This should be entertaining.
Kash smirks and lowers his voice, “And what about you, gorgeous?”
I glance at Beckett expecting him to be pissed and while I can see that caveman inside peeking out, I can also see amusement and trust in his eyes. He’s curious to see how Amelia cuts Kash down and he has no doubt that she will.
Amelia cocks her head to the side, “Oh, I see. You’re the self-proclaimed playboy of the band, huh? You probably think that little smirk gets you anything you want. Ellen is the only single woman in the room. She’s a badass chick, but I should mention that she’s Beckett’s mom, so I’d be thinking about saving that super special smirk for groupies tonight.” She gives a deep sigh, “It’s so cute when the kids are allowed to sit at the adult table for the first time.” Walsh and Cole bark out laughs and Beckett grins from ear to ear, eating this shit up. Amelia grins and leans forward conspiratorially, “If you know who Beckett is then you know I’m his girl. This is still hush hush, but I’m also growing his baby.” Kash’s eyes widen and Amelia chuckles, “Yeah, kind of a boner killer, huh?”
The room erupts in laughter and Kash shakes his head before he starts laughing too. Beckett wraps an arm around Amelia’s shoulder and kisses her temple. Amelia turns her head and kisses the underside of Beckett’s jaw and everyone falls into comfortable conversations, absorbing the guys from PA.
Amelia shimmies out of Beckett’s hold when Sawyer approaches him and starts gushing about Banks Ink.. She walks to Kash and loops her arm through his, “Come on kid, I’ll buy you a beer.” She arches her eyebrow, “You’re old enough to drink, right?”
Kash throws his head back and laughs as they make their way over to the food and drink set-up. Zeke nuzzles my neck and kisses right below my ear. He knows that turns me on, which is probably why he’s doing it. I feel my cheeks blush slightly at the thought of finding some room or closet backstage in this arena for a little alone time. His thumb brushes back and forth on the bare skin of my back and I feel goosebumps covering my skin.
Sometimes it’s inconvenient how my body reacts to this man; you’d think since I spent so long suppressing it and hiding it that it would be easier to control. It’s not. It’s so fucking not. Now that my body knows how good he can make it feel, it’s even worse. I shift slightly on Zeke’s lap and he lets out a low groan.
He murmurs against my neck, “Fuck, little fairy. I’m so glad I didn’t have to kick that kid’s ass for looking at your sexy as fuck self.” He grips my knee with his other hand. His thumb runs up the inside of my thigh as far as it can without him moving his hand up my thigh. Fucking torture. “You look fucking amazing in this dress, Livy. I have a feeling you’re hiding something under this jacket.”
I clear my throat and give a small one shoulder shrug. He bites my earlobe in response and I barely stifle a moan. I bite my lip and Zeke chuckles against my skin.
Walsh gets up to grab another drink and talk with Troy, Ryder and Booker across the room. Logan plops down on the couch next to us with a beer in his hand along with one for each of us, which we thank him for. Okay, maybe these kids aren’t so bad. I’m also kind of relieved that Zeke won’t be able to keep teasing me now that we have an audience in the front row.
Logan nods toward Zeke, “I’ve seen your work online man, you’re really fucking good.” The edges of Zeke’s mouth tip up and I can’t help but grin. With us and especially with me, he’s come a long way from the gruff aloof loner of the group, but it’s still his default with strangers. It’s comforting that we get a side of him that he doesn’t give to just anyone.
“Thanks man,” Zeke grunts out.
Someone with a headset that looks official pops their head into the room, “Fifteen minutes!”
Before anyone from SO even has time to respond, the head disappears and the door closes. Cole saunters over the alcohol and starts setting up some shots. Oh. Shit. The other guys from SO stand up and stretch, Gavin starts twirling his drumsticks in his fingers.
Logan gives a little smile, “I’ve been thinking about getting the Denver skyline done on the inside of my upper arm, but in a black graffiti style.”
Zeke’s eyes light up, “That sounds pretty cool. I’d be down with doing something like that.” A huge smile spreads across Logan’s face when Zeke tells him, “Send a message on the shop’s insta page and Andrea will be able to set you up with an appointment.”
Logan takes a swig of his beer and nods, “Awesome. I can’t wait, I thought you’d be the perfect person to make it happen.” He cuts his eyes to me and gives me a shy smile. “My best friend is a big fan of yours, actually. She really wants a Día de los Muertos tattoo done in your cute girly style to honor her heritage.”
I give him a big smile because that sounds right up my alley. “Oh cool. I’ve done a few things like that before and I’d love to talk to her about what exactly she’s looking for. When you send that message to Andrea, let her know about your friend wanting an appointment and we can set up a consultation with her.”
Logan rubs his jaw, “Cool. She’d
love that. Her birthday’s coming up and I never know what to get her.”
My eyebrows shoot up; a tattoo is kind of an expensive gift, even for your best friend. Zeke narrows his eyes and I know that he’s having the same thought. There has to be something else to this than just best friends.
I study Logan, “She’s your best friend?”
Logan rolls his eyes and lets out a self-deprecating chuckle, “Yeah, we’ve been best friends since we were in diapers. Just friends.”
I nod slowly and see Zeke cut his eyes to me; me thinks the rocker doth protest too much. “Okay, just friends. Got it.” I give him a big smile, “That’s a really nice gift and really thoughtful.”
Logan opens his mouth to respond, but before he can Cole’s voice booms, “Okay, family and baby bands, it’s tradition that we take a shot before we go on stage and since you’re here you have to join us.” Cole shoots a sympathetic look at Amelia, “Except for you, little mama.”
Cheers go up and Amelia gives a little pout that quickly turns into a smile and a laugh. Everyone gets up and moves toward Cole where shots in solo cups are handed out. Fancy. I’m surprised to see that Blake and all the guys of Higgins Security get in on the shot action.
When I catch Blakes eye and widen my eyes in surprise, he smirks and shrugs one shoulder. I guess you don’t buck tradition, especially when you’re not in charge of security for the night. I bet this is the only drink I see him have all night though. He shoots me a wink and I know that I’m right.
After the shot it’s a whirlwind of activity as we say bye to the bands and our big group is escorted to our reserved section. I have to say, the VIP treatment is fucking nice. The last time I was at a concert I was in the upper deck, but I’m pretty sure we’re close enough to be sweated on tonight. The crowd is pumped and it’s hard to not get sucked into the excitement. Anyway, why wouldn’t you want to? We’re here to see some rock stars do what they do best.
It doesn’t take long for the lights in the stadium to go out and the guys to strut out on stage. The stadium goes wild. They put on an amazing show; everyone does exactly what they’re supposed to do. Cole is charismatic and sexy; he commands the space, and everyone is more than happy to go along for the ride. Gavin never misses a beat on the drums, driving the entire show. He’s a beast; how the fuck he has that sort of stamina I’ll never know. Booker is larger than life and passion practically drips from his guitar. No, not in a sexual way; jeez. Okay, maybe a little bit in a sexual way. A guy playing guitar is sexy, I don’t care who you are and how much in love you are. Booker pulls Elliot into the spotlight and they play off each other with such lightness, it’s fun to watch.
They put on the type of show that makes you want to go out and learn how to play because it looks like so much fucking fun. The music is always the highlight and they take you on a journey of love and loss, like so much music does, but there’s still hope.
These four guys certainly didn’t act like rock stars at Thanksgiving dinner and it was easy to almost forget how fucking talented they are. They put on a show I’ll never forget. I think Walsh fainted halfway through; well, not really, but it looked touch and go there for a minute.
Toward the end of the show, Cole addresses the crowd. “It’s been great being here in Denver with all of you,” the crowd goes wild and he smirks. “This tour stop has given us something we weren’t expecting, a new home and a new family that we’re grateful for. Sometimes you meet people and they’re instantly family and that’s how it was for us when we met Beckett Banks and his crew. That is, after he put some sick ink on me the other day at Banks Ink..” The crowd gets even louder and I’m not sure if they just love tattoos or if they know about the shop, either way; holy shit. “He met the love of his life, Amelia, not long ago and I have to say that I’m a little jealous of the love they have.” I look over and Amelia’s eyes are wide and round, Beckett looks shocked as hell. Fuck, business is about to blow up. Cole saunters over to the side of the stage closest to us and points to our seats. The crowd is lapping up every word and cheering. “They welcomed us into their home, their life and their family. So, family, this one is for all of you.”
The guys rock out their biggest hit about coming home and how the threads of our souls bring us home. The stadium sings along, and Zeke wraps his arms around me and kisses my temple. I glance over to see Walsh holding up his phone, an app displaying a lighter. I bark out a laugh and just enjoy this fucking moment. I never thought I’d have a song dedicated to me, us, at a rock concert that’s for damn sure.
The high continues until the concert ends when we are escorted backstage again. This time we’re not escorted back to the dressing room, but instead are led adjacent to the stage where the guys are drinking bottles of water and wiping sweat off their faces. Elliot’s blonde hair is plastered to head and he’s jumping up and down, full of energy; it’s kind of adorable.
Gavin grins at me and wraps me up in a hug before I can stop him. Now, covered in sweat, I grimace as Zeke pulls me back into his arms, laughing at me being grossed out. Gavin throws his head back and laughs before pulling Walsh into a bro hug. He gives a little salute and then bounds back onto the stage with a huge grin on his face.
Cole bumps Walsh’s shoulder with his own before winking, “We’re just going to go and play this encore. Stay here, we’ll be right back.”
Walsh’s eyes almost bug out of his head completely at the prospect of being this close while the guys play and I have to say, it’s something I never thought I’d experience. It’s intense and seeing even a portion of the crowd from this angle tells me that I could never in a million years get on stage and do what they do.
Zeke whispers in my ear, “I should go and find someplace to fuck you so that you smell like me instead of Gavin.”
I scrunch up my nose and scoff; Zeke chuckles against my neck which causes goosebumps to cover my skin and my g-string to disintegrate completely. Fucking hell. Before Zeke can tease me further the boys of PA come out and join us. Kash sidles up next to us with a small smile on his face but a weariness about him.
He clears his throat, “No disrespect meant earlier man, your girl is sexy as fuck. I hope there’s no hard feelings.”
Zeke grins and gives a little shrug, “Naw, man. She is sexy as fuck, can’t fault you there, but she’s mine.”
I give a little huff, “You know I’m standing right here, right?” I mumble, “Fucking cavemen.”
Zeke gives me a little squeeze and Kash chuckles, “What’s everyone getting into tonight? I thought I heard something about partying at The Den tonight?”
I give Kash a smile and nod while pointing over at Steve, “Yup, we’re living it up in the VIP lounge tonight. Steve’s the owner.”
Kash’s eyes widen, “No shit.”
Zeke meets Beckett’s eyes a few feet from us who gives a small nod; Zeke smirks. “You guys are coming out with us too. SO hooked us up with a party bus for the night.”
Kash looks a kid on Christmas morning with the huge grin that spreads across his face. At that moment Nate and Sam pull me away from Zeke to dance with them. Their happy energy is infectious; I pull Andrea into our little makeshift dance floor. I notice Amelia, with a terrified look on her face, dart around the other side of Beckett in the attempt to avoid dancing. I raise my eyebrow at Andrea; she smirks in response. We’ll get Amelia out on the dance floor before the end of the night.
When the guys come off stage, they’re all grins and full of adrenaline. I bet that’s a high like no other, but one I’m okay with never experiencing. Yikes. Zeke wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me tight against his body. I snuggle against his side; right where I’m supposed be.
Booker’s all grins, “We’re just going to shower and change and shit. Meet you all in the bus.” He nods at Sawyer, “You guys are coming, right?”
Sawyer gets that same look on his face that Kash did earlier and it makes me laugh. He’s nodding so quickly that I’m a little concerned he mi
ght hurt himself. Whiplash due to utter excitement? Is that a thing?
Cole slings an arm around Ellen who looks up at him with pride and love. He grins down at her, “Are you sure we can’t talk you into coming out with us tonight?”
Ellen blushes, “No way, you kids should go and have your fun.”
Gavin kisses Ellen’s cheek, “If you’re sure.” Ellen nods and Gavin heaves a big sigh like Ellen not coming is more a hardship than her coming. “There’s a car for you next to the bus,” his mumble laced with disappointment.
Ellen pats his cheek and murmurs, “Such good boys. Thank you.” She smiles at the band, “You guys fucking rocked tonight.” The guys laugh and their smiles grow just a little bit bigger.
Zeke kisses my temple as SO disappears deeper backstage, giving Ellen hugs and kisses on the cheek as they go. We head out to the bus, the kids of PA following closely behind, before saying goodnight to Ellen.
Ellen gives me a hug that reminds me of hugs I used to get from my mom. She gives me an understanding smile, along with a little extra squeeze. Her eyes fill with the same pride I saw when she looked at Cole when she looks over all of us; then she heads home.
I shake off the heavier emotions and allow myself to get swept up in the almost frantic atmosphere that’s still full of excitement from the show; hell, all we did was watch it. The kids of PA are practically bouncing off the walls, but it’s kind of fucking adorable. Drinks are passed around and it doesn’t take long before SO is tearing through the door, full of adrenaline and endorphins.
Amelia grins and tosses a wide tube at Cole. He pumps his fists when he opens it and pulls out a double wide joint; seriously it’s probably the size of a double wide trailer. Cole grins from ear to ear and kisses Amelia on the top of her head.
Asher, from PA, who’s been more reserved and a little quiet the entire time they’ve been around us, looks shocked. I chuckle and lean closer to him, “Amelia manages Green Space.” He furrows his brow, his surprise growing, “Yeah, she gets that a lot.”