“I don’t know.” There were so many good musicians playing tonight. I hadn’t had much time while on tour to pick up Simon and work on my material. The nights I played with the guys we always did covers, so my journal basically sat void of lyrics I normally spent hours in the evenings working with.
“Play something for me.”
No girl could resist the charm of this man. He was a true gentleman, one that had yet to turn into cold and cynical in this messed up world. How could I possibly sit here in this chair the entire evening when he asked me to play for him?
“I don’t know,” I muttered softly, chewing on my bottom lip. Brantley leaned in and softly pressed a kiss to my temple, instantly erasing the doubt and worry I had been mulling around in my mind.
“Please?” He asked again.
A smile appeared on my face as I nodded my head. How could I possibly say no now?
The stage was small, as only a couple lights light up the platform and the single barstool centered on the wooden platform. I wiggled in my seat, adjusting the strap of Simon on my neck and pulling the head of the microphone down.
“Hi. I’m Molly, and well, a wonderful friend convinced me to get up tonight, so……………………..um…………….yeah. This is for you, Brantley.”
“………….and here I am, begging for you to accept me,” I sang the final line of the lyrics I had been working on some time ago. This was just another song earlier; lyrics from my notebook and a melody I had written one afternoon. Sure, all songs had some sort of deeper reflection, words coming from some place that I could not explain. But, for some reason, this song was the perfect scenario on my situation right now. Being up here on that stage made me realize how much I needed someone like Brantley in my life; someone who cared for me on a different level, and didn’t want me just for a booty call. I needed the stability from someone who was going to be there at all times. A man who I could turn to when my life was falling to pieces; someone willing to pick me up in the aftermath. Brantley was someone that I could see sharing my life with; taking the good along with the bad. I didn’t need a forever kind of thing, just someone who could be there for me right now.
I peered further out into the crowd, my eyes searching for our table in the darkness. Suddenly my eyes caught that beautiful smile on his face. I couldn’t help but grin back at the man sitting there watching me. This was everything I should want, and everything I should need. No more fighting something that was good for me, I had to jump feet first into what was waiting.
“You were absolutely amazing, Molly,” Brantley beamed when I got back to the table.
Taking my seat, I leaned over and placed a kiss to his cheek. “Thank you.” I smiled.
“You really are something else. You realize that, right?”
“I’m starting to,” I replied softly, picking up my glass and taking a much needed sip.
“Want to head home?” Brantley questioned, sliding his hand up on my thigh.
If I wanted to actually try at something else with Brantley, I couldn’t just hop into bed with him. I needed to make sure my intentions were true, and not just searching for something that Reid couldn’t give me.
“Sure,” I offered with a grin. Brantley stood and offered his hand, which I willing accepted. This was the start of something. Yeah, I didn’t need a relationship. But it couldn’t hurt either.
Chapter 19 You want me to do what?
I liked sex. There was no denying that it was something that I needed. It was a lot better with a penis than my vibrator, but I would take it either way. Turning away Brantley last night was insanely hard. I was pretty sure I would have caved if he wasn’t so understanding to my reasoning why. I claimed that if I wanted something with him, something tangible, and not sexually based, then we needed to take it slow. My only other relationship ended in major failure, and I refused to ever push myself into a situation like that ever again. The scars I harbored from that catastrophe were something I would carry with me for my lifetime; things that would never go away, no matter how hard I tried to suppress the memories. So I spent the night alone, in my quiet apartment with only the buzzing sound of my little friend that filled the silent night.
We were scheduled to leave tonight at eight, so technically it wasn’t three whole days off, but rather two and a sliver of a third. I knew I had to do a couple things at the office this afternoon for Stephanie before our plane flew out, but the rest of the morning was totally mine for the taking.
While brushing my teeth, I stared back at myself in the mirror. Wrinkling my nose, an idea struck me as my toothbrush fell out of my mouth and splattered on the counter. Immediately I spit the paste of out my mouth and ran for my phone.
“Siri, closest salon,” I spoke clearly into my phone. I anxiously awaited her results while staring at the screen. Several locations popped up quickly, and I smashed the call button on the first one listed.
“Hi, I’m wondering if you have any openings this morning?”
I couldn’t wipe the shit eating grin off my face as I entered NP Management’s office. A change was exactly what I needed, and oh lordy did I get one. The reflection in the elevator doors made me giggle with excitement. Never had I been this bold before. Normally I just rocked a couple colored pieces of fun in my hair, sticking with the black base for the last eight years or so. So now, looking at this chick with bright purple hair was a complete shock to my existence. I had never felt so confident in myself as I was right now. This was the look that screamed I had control of my life completely, and hell, I was going to rock it until the day I died.
Sliding my key card into the door, I held my head up high. “Morning Stephanie.”
Stephanie did a double take from her computer, looking at me in shock.
“Thought I would try something new,” I commented, smiling like an idiot.
“Looks good,” Stephanie said quickly, instantly turning back to her computer.
Even her lack of response to my change didn’t dull my confidence. I absolutely loved my bright purple hair. It was a fantastic new addition to my already kick ass new life. This really was the start of something incredible.
After working for a couple hours on booking future hotel dates, Stephanie walked into my office.
“So I think you’ve got a handle on this whole road thing, right?”
“Of course Stephanie,” I replied, turning in my seat to face her.
“Okay good, well then I’m going to let you take the reins for the next couple weeks. I’ve got this up and coming band that Daddy claims is going to be huge, so I need to focus some more attention in their direction right now.”
“Oh,” I replied in shock. Sure, I had a handle on things she needed me to accomplish at each stop on the tour. But then again I was only a PA, not the head shot caller.
“Don’t worry; you still have the tour manager if you get lost. I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t trust you, Molly,” Stephanie reassured me, leaning against the glass wall that separated our offices.
“Thanks for this opportunity Stephanie, I appreciate it more than I can express,” I rambled while my hands fidgeted on my desk, knocking the phone off its cradle.
“HR is going to send some paperwork up for you to sign, just make sure it gets done before you leave.”
“Papers?”
“I can’t have you in charge with the title of PA, can I? It’s called a promotion, Molly,” Stephanie questioned, giving me a puzzled look.
My heart had already skipped a beat when she uttered the word promotion, but my mind couldn’t wrap its confused self around the statement.
“Promotion?” I asked in shock.
“Have you been paying attention, Molly? You are being promoted to Assistant Manager under my supervision. You will still have all your normal duties to attend to, but with a better title now,” Stephanie broke it down for me.
Never had I imagined that this would be happening so quickly for me. Not in a million years would I have be
lieved someone if they told me not even two months into moving across country, I would basically fall into my dream job, and get promoted so quickly. This was a fairy tale kind of life that I was sure would be ruined by some evil stepmother, or wicked witch.
“Molly?”
Shaking my head, I managed to bring myself out of the daze I slipped into. “Sorry Stephanie. Thank you so much for this opportunity.”
Stephanie offered a half smile and turned back to her office. I couldn’t believe I was an assistant manager now. Sure, I had no clue if any fun new responsibilities or perks came with this title, but fuck, I was moving on up.
“Oh, Molly, can you grab my dry cleaning before you go?” Stephanie poked her head back into my office.
“Sure thing.” I laughed. This was going to be epic, I just knew it.
Now that I was filling Stephanie’s shoes completely while she tended to another band, I had been assigned to fly back with the guys and not with the crew that took off earlier this evening. This was a huge step for me professionally, and I refused to let anything fuck this opportunity up.
“Fuck, Molly, you hair is hot,” Brody yelled as he exited the car.
New hair, huge promotion, hell yeah I had this.
“Thanks, Brody, now get your ass on the plane,” I yelled back at him, trying to keep a stupid grin off my face. I watched as the other guys filed out of the three cars that pulled into the hanger. My eyes searched for Reid, but stopped directly at Brantley. A smile spread across his face as he walked to where I was standing.
“You look stunning,” he commented, leaning over and placing a kiss to the side of my face.
“Thanks,” I replied, biting my lip and quickly glancing down at my clipboard.
“You riding with us?”
“Yep, see you on plane.”
Brantley squeezed my shoulder and turned toward the plane. My eyes started to follow him up the steps when something caused me to turn and look away. Standing over by the car was an obviously moody Reid. His eyes were narrowed, and his body was tense as he stood outside of the car door. I knew the pissed off look he was sporting was for me, considering he was staring directly at me. His eyes made me feel about three feet tall, making my mind turn in circles as to what I could have possibly done to anger him to this extent. Tiny bent over and whispered something in his ear. His expression didn’t change, but he started heading to the plane.
“Hi Reid,” I managed to stammer out.
His eyes never left mine until he reached the stairs. Not a word was spoken from his lips as he disappeared into the doorway of the aircraft. A shiver flew through my body at the coldness he projected. This was because of Brantley. I swear that man was moodier than a damn preteen hitting puberty. Some flight this was going to be.
Stepping into the plane, I stopped in the entry way of the lounge area. Several members of both band were sitting on the couches, and the rest littered the six oversized seats at the end of the jet.
Clearing my throat, I paused before opening my mouth to speak to the guys. “So, I don’t know if you are aware, but Stephanie will not be accompanying us on the road for the next two weeks. On that note, I have everything prepared for her absence and anything that you guys need, please don’t hesitate to ask me.”
“I need a blowjob, Molly. Is that something you can handle for me?” Brody snickered from his seat next to Reid.
“I’m sure you are capable of finding someone or using your hand. I can help in tracking down some lube if that’s the route you are forced to take,” I tossed back at him, rolling my eyes in disgust. A collective laugh came from the rest of the men on the plane; everyone except Reid, who has placed his headphones over his ears and closed his eyes.
“Anything else, you guys know how to contact me,” I added, taking an empty seat at the front of the plane. I swiftly buckled my seatbelt and let out a small sigh. I had a handle on this; at least I prayed I did.
Even with the plane darkened, I kept sneaking glances at Reid. Brantley had come to sit with me half way through the flight, and everything inside of me said pay attention to him and not Reid. It was so easy when it was just the two of us. However, I always had a little rain cloud that followed me wherever I went, and it always seemed to pour down whenever Reid and I shared any type of space. He had avoided looking in my direction every damn time my eyes darted over to his seat. I wanted to march right over there and demand that he knock this shit off. I loved the Reid that I experienced at his place. He was charming, compassionate, loving, and dare I say personable. This angry, bitter rock star attitude he was portraying was starting to irritate me more than my mother did.
“So I didn’t congratulate you on your promotion,” Brantley said quietly, snapping my attention back from staring at Reid.
“How did you know?” I don’t remember telling the guys I got promoted, just that I would be taking over while Stephanie was away.
“Stephanie called us earlier today, making sure we were all okay with the change.”
“Oh,” I said quietly. Of course she would clear it with the bands first.
“Have you met your PA yet?”
“I didn’t realize I had one.” I figured I would just be in charge of everything now, not really have any extra help.
“Yeah, Stephanie said there was someone coming on the road with you for the next couple week.” Brantley shrugged, grabbing my hand and interlocking our fingers together.
I should have pulled our hands apart, as I didn’t want to parade whatever we were doing together in front of everyone just yet, but all I could think about was my assistant. It may be silly, but for some reason having an assistant was like a huge deal to me. I thought being promoted was the coolest shit ever, just wait till I met whoever was working under me. My eyes glanced around the plane and stopped at Reid’s seat. He was glaring directly at Brantley and I. Our eyes locked as we silently exchanged feelings from across the plane.
“Molly?” Brantley questioned, breaking the connection between Reid and I.
“Huh,” I replied, turning my attention back to Brantley.
“I asked if you were excited.”
“Oh, yeah sure,” I managed to spit out. Reid made me completely sure about absolutely nothing.
The plane touched down in Austin after a couple long hours of a silent staring contest between Reid and me. I was sure Brantley realized what was going on, but he didn’t say anything about the soundless exchanges between the two of us.
The air was still warm in Austin, a pleasant change from the cold bitter climate we left behind in Seattle. Stepping off the plane, I noticed a tall blonde waiting by one of the cars. She wasn’t the typical groupie I had been accustomed to. Sure she was gorgeous; tall, slender, big boobs, but she didn’t rock the hoochie sex vibe that they normally gave off. I was all prepared to walk over and tell her maybe later, we needed to head to the hotel, when the tall blonde let out a squeal and ran past me. Turning back to the plane in confusion, I about fell over in shock when the woman jumped into Brantley’s arms.
“What the fuck?” I muttered in shock, watching as the two of them sucked face and groped each other out in the open.
“Close your mouth, Molly Anne. Wouldn’t want you catching flies” Reid sneered, climbing into one of the black waiting cars. There were some hoots and hollers from the remaining band mates that exited the plane, and none of them seemed shocked to see the two of them together. Am I really that dumb or just missing something?
“Uh…………..Brantley, we need to get to the hotel,” I managed to finally blurt out, still not grasping at the scene unfolding in front of me.
“Come on Baby,” Brantley exclaimed to the blonde as she detached herself from his tall frame. Grabbing her hand, he smiled directly at me then pulled her into a waiting car.
“You know the rules, Brantley,” I sheepishly called out, unsure of what to really do at this moment.
“Oh sorry, Molly, let me introduce you to my wife. Ashley, this is Molly, ou
r Assistant Manager,” Brantley spoke in a calm voice.
All I could do was nod my head as I watched the blonde extend her hand out to me and giggle.
“Nice to meet you, Molly,” she greeted with a southern drawl.
“Um……………” my words struggled to form. I silently prayed not to break down right here on the tarmac. I couldn’t let him see how this affected me, how my already broken heart just combusted into dust on the floor.
“Molly Anne, we need to go,” Reid’s voice came from behind me, gently grabbing my wrist and pulling me to the waiting car door.
“Okay,” I finally managed to say, still confused as to what really just happened.
“Come on Baby,” Brantley cooed to his apparent wife, pulling her to another waiting car.
I watched as the two of them disappeared into the other car, and then quietly slipped into the front seat of the other vehicle. Shutting the door, I waited for the driver to finish loading the luggage and silently let the tears fall down my cheeks. This is why I didn’t do love.
Chapter 20: Oh hello. I forgot to tell you, I AM MARRIED!!!
I silently cried in the front seat of the car all the way to the hotel. Tears no longer fell from my eyes as I managed to gain composure on the outside; however I was a complete and utter mess on the inside. I had a job to do, and couldn’t let this effect my performance. The world wouldn’t stop for my damaged heart, nor would my job wait while I tried to fix the broken pieces.
Pulling the visor down in the car, I flipped open the mirror, bracing myself for the horrid visual I was about to witness. “Just as I thought,” I grumbled out loud, wiping the mascara smears out from under my eyes. I looked like a damn raccoon that had been hit on the side of the road. My eyes were red and puffy; my cheeks were tinted black from wiping away the black tears that fell down my face. Someone just needed to scoop me up and bury me.
Hot Southern Mess (Hide Your Crazy) Page 15