Sheet Music - A Rock 'n' Roll Love Story
Page 9
Michael was waiting.
“Michael, you scared the hell out of me!”
Michael approached her slowly, his eyes scanning her face. “I was leaving but you seemed pretty upset; and I wanted to make sure you were okay before I left.”
Annie forced a smile onto her reddened face. “Upset doesn’t even begin to describe it,” she joked. “How long have you been standing out here?”
He laughed. “Long enough to know that the trash can in there won’t survive the beating you just gave it.”
She wiped at her raw cheeks. “Well, I’m sorry you had to hear that, but Gary gets me so damned mad. Some times I swear I could kill him with my own two hands.”
Michael chuckled. “Remind me never to piss you off.”
A pause fell between them and Annie began to drift toward the theater door. “Well, I guess I’ll see you later,” she sighed.
“Annie…” he called to her.
“What?”
“I just told the others that I’ve arranged studio time at Brian’s house for your band next Monday night. Can you make it?”
A smile spread across her face. “I’d be crazy to say no to that.”
“Yes, you would,” he smiled.
“Then I’ll be there,” she replied with a wave and pulled open the large wooden theater door.
“Annie.” Michael took a step closer and caught her hand. Then gently tugged on her arm until she was pressed against his chest. His arms quickly circled her waist and clung to her tightly.
“What are you doing?” she protested, her eyes raising to meet his.
“I don’t know and that’s been the problem since the day I met you.”
The smile faded from his face. His eyes grew intense, as his hands fanned across her bottom. He lifted her first, then began rocking her against his expanding groin.
Annie swayed with him. She could feel muscles harden and tense then mold perfectly into the cleft of her body. Her breath quickened. Her heart raced out of control. She saw his mouth descending slowly upon her. It was open and ready with lips smooth and so very moist. She could taste him by sight. But, in the fleeting moment that comes before delirium takes over the brain, she stiffened and pulled away from him.
“Michael, this can’t happen. You said so yourself. So, why make it harder than it has to be?”
His lips found her throat as she squirmed in his arms. “I don't think it could get any harder,” he teased.
“That’s not what I meant,” she protested, but his lips and tongue were still burning new paths along the length of her neck. His large hands cupped her buttocks and held her against his body. “Come on, Michael. Stop it!”
Behind them, Sammy coughed loudly to make his presence known. “Sorry to break up the party, but your band is ready to start practice, Annie.” He tossed Michael a knowing look and winked.
The gesture made Annie’s face flush with embarrassment. She gave Michael a hard shove on his chest and he dropped her to the floor. “There’s no party, Sammy,” she answered with sarcasm, as she adjusted her clothing. “It’s just Michael playing games.”
Sammy nodded and disappeared through the doors. Annie turned to follow him but Michael grabbed her hand again. She spun around irritated and glared at him. His eyes looked hurt, as he cocked his head to look at her.
“I’m not playing games, Annie,” he whispered.
She shook her head in disbelief. “Only a few hours ago you told me…”
“I know what I said.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “Then why are you doing this to me now?”
“Because I want you.”
“And I want to win this stupid contest, but maybe we both want things we’ll never have,” she answered.
“Maybe you’re wrong.”
“It was one night, Michael; not a big deal. It should be easy for us to forget about it and get back to business. Right?”
Before he could reply, she pulled her hand from his grasp and slipped back into the auditorium.
Practice was uneventful the first two days without Michael. Communications were tense and unyielding. By Wednesday, Gary’s stubbornness had softened and the band slowly began to gel. It seemed that without Michael hovering, Gary was free to relax. Sammy had quickly fallen into place and everyone appreciated his efforts, including Gary. Annie’s confidence began to blossom and the laughter had reappeared amongst them.
It was raining heavily when practice ended on Wednesday and Sammy offered to drive Annie home.
“I only live a mile down that road,” she protested. “I won’t melt!”
“Suit yourself,” he shrugged. “I’ll be leaving in five minutes, if you change your mind.”
Annie stuck her head out the front door of the Play House. The wind had picked up considerably, blowing the rain sideways. Gary had already left and Buzz and Ivory were about to. She pulled her head back inside and caught Sammy just as he was about to exit the back door.
“Sammy,” she called to him. “I think I’ll take you up on that ride offer.”
“Then, come on, girl. Get your ass back here! We’ll make a run for my car.”
Together they made a mad dash for Sammy’s car but the doors were locked. In the seconds it took for him to unlock them, they were soaked to the skin. Inside the car, Sammy shook his head and sprayed more water at Annie. They laughed so hard the windows quickly fogged.
“I’m drenched,” Annie giggled. “Even my feet!”
“It’s only water! I’m not going to melt,” Sammy replied in a girlish voice.
Annie gave him a playful shove and smiled. She really liked Sammy. In the short time she had known him they had become good friends. She felt safe with him. Somehow he knew just what to say to make her smile.
Sammy started his car and headed down the main street toward Annie’s apartment. The rain pelted the windshield with such force they could hardly see the road.
“That’s it,” she shouted. “That’s my driveway on the right.”
Sammy drove his car up onto the grass to get as close as possible to Annie’s back door.
“Why don’t you come in and dry off a bit and wait until the rain stops before you head home,” Annie suggested.
“Actually, that sounds good,” he replied, smiling broadly. “Get your house keys ready,” he said. “On the count of three. One, two…”
Annie bolted toward the door before Sammy had finished the count. Behind her she could hear Sammy yelling about her foul play. A second later he was beside her on the steps as she fumbled with the slippery keys.
“Sounds like your phone is ringing,” he said.
“Oh no, I think you’re right,” Annie answered, struggling to get a good grip on her wet keys.
Finally, the door burst open and they both fell into the kitchen, wet and laughing. Annie ran to the phone, attempted to pick it up, then roared with more laughter when it slipped from her hand and fell to the floor.
“Hello,” she finally called out, placing the receiver against her slick face.
“Annie?”
“Yeah, who’s this?”
“It’s me, Mike. Don’t tell me you’ve already forgotten the sound of my voice?”
Annie’s heart immediately began to thump harder in her chest. She took the phone into her bedroom and sat on the bed. All it took was the sound of his voice and she was at attention, her whole body on full alert. Sammy was still in the kitchen laughing, standing in the puddle his wet clothes were making.
“What’s all the noise? Are you having a party?” Michael asked.
“No, it’s just Sammy. Wait a minute, Michael.” Then she called to Sammy. “The bathroom is over there. Grab some towels and dry off,” she directed, putting the phone back up to her ear.
“What is he doing there?” Michael asked, hating the tone of his own voice.
“He gave me a ride home from practice because it’s raining pretty hard here,” she replied. “We’re both soaked to the skin.”
“I know it’s late, but I was wondering how practice is going?” “It’s been a struggle but I feel like we’ve finally turned a corner,” Annie answered.
Annie took a deep breath and prayed she could maintain control of her emotions. But hearing the soft texture of his voice was making her feel weak and vulnerable.
“How’s Sammy working out?” he asked.
Annie smiled to herself. If it hadn’t been for Sammy’s strong shoulder to cry on this week, she knew for certain she would have fallen apart.
“Sammy’s been very supportive to me and a great addition to the band too.”
“What about Gary?”
“Well, Gary will always be Gary. But I must say, he’s lightened up a lot without you being at the practices.”
Michael sighed. “I’ve been known to bring out the worst in people.”
Silence fell between them. If it weren’t for the gentle rhythm of his breathing, she would have thought he had hung up.
“I miss you,” he said in a whispered tone.
Annie closed her eyes. “Michael, please don’t say that.”
“Why?”
“Because I can’t listen to it,” her voice cracked with emotion. Tears pooled in her eyes.
“You’re crying?”
“No. I’m fine. How about you?” she asked, wiping at her eyes.
“I’ve been better.”
“What's wrong?” she asked.
“It’s been a shitty week. I’ve got too much going on in my life right now and it’s all pretty stressful.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Annie said, noting a hint of exhaustion in his voice.
“Brian and I have been... at odds this week. There's been a lot of fighting. He's not very happy with me.”
“I’m afraid to ask why,” Annie said.
Michael sighed loudly. “He says I’m distracted.”
“And are you?” she asked.
“Yeah, with you.”
Annie closed her eyes and smiled through her tears. He sounded like he was in as much pain as she was and for some reason this pleased her.
“Well, I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Are you?” he asked with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
Annie wiped the rain water and tears from her cheeks. “You’re giving me the impression that you think I concocted some sort of evil plan to complicate your life. That was the farthest thing from my mind,” Annie whispered. “Seriously, Michael. It was one night, just one night. You’re the king of one-night-stands, so please let it go. I’m okay with it and you should be too.”
Annie inhaled slowly, gathering strength as she filled her lungs. “You have a job to do that requires your full attention right now - as do I. I think we need to eliminate the distractions in our lives so that we can both get back to business.”
A long silence hung between them. Annie’s heart ached.
“Is that what you really want?” he asked softly.
Annie tightened her jaw. “It’s the way it has to be. You said so yourself.”
“Annie, you didn’t complicate my life. You made it better,” he sighed. “I want you to know that.”
She closed her eyes and sighed. Silence filled the phone again.
“Why don’t you put Sammy on the phone?” he asked.
“Sure. I’ll go get him for you.”
“Annie, are you still coming to the show Friday night?”
“I was given the impression that your concert wasn’t an optional event.”
“It isn’t.”
“Then I guess you’ll be seeing me on Friday night,” she answered and passed the phone over to Sammy.
“Hey Mike, how’s it going?”
“Shitty.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that,” Sammy replied.
“What the hell is going on there?” Michael asked.
“What do you mean? Rehearsals have been going pretty good.”
“I’m telling you now, Sammy. If you lay a fucking hand on her, you’re all done!”
Suddenly the phone went dead.
Annie was bent over drying her hair in the bathroom, half listening to Sammy’s end of the conversation. Suddenly Sammy appeared in the doorway of the bathroom.
“Did he hang up?” Annie asked.
“Yeah, you could say that.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Mike just threatened me,” Sammy stated, shaking his head in disbelief.
“What?” Annie quickly stood upright. “What did he say?”
“Honestly? He said if I laid a hand on you, I was all done.”
“I don’t understand.”
Sammy ran the towel over his damp hair and then draped it around his thick neck as he plunked himself down at the kitchen table. “Listen, I know about you and Mike. So why don’t you fill in the blanks for me. What exactly happened and why is he so pissed off?”
“He told you about that?” Annie asked.
“He didn't have to. The day I met you in the parking lot it was written all over both your faces. When you showed up, Mike suddenly lost the ability to form a complete thought. I saw the way he was looking at you. It was obvious that something was going on.”
“It was one night. That was it. End of story.”
“I’m not buying it. So what’s really going on?”
Annie sat down across from him and contemplated her answer. “I don’t know what happened. We were alone a couple of times, talking, getting to know each other and then…I don’t know. It doesn’t matter,” Annie shrugged. “It’s over, long before it really began.”
“Bullshit,” Sammy replied.
“What?”
“I said: ‘bullshit’. What you just said is a load of crap.” Sammy leaned across the table closer to her. “Listen, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. I talked to Brian yesterday, and he said Mike’s been moping around their studio all week. From what I understand, he’s made a real ass of himself, too. In fact, Brian asked him to leave practice yesterday and not to come back until he had adjusted his attitude. So, would you like to try and tell me again what happened between you two?”
Annie began to cry. “I’m in over my head, Sammy. I can tell you that much.”
“Holy shit! You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”
Annie dropped her head to the table and began to sob. “Totally, out of control in love with him and I’m so damned angry for allowing it to happen! Realistically, I have to ask myself what the hell I was thinking. I’m not his ‘type’ at all. Getting involved with him was a huge mistake!” Her eyes lifted to Sammy, brimming with tears and begging for an answer. He opened his mouth to speak but she continued to talk, like a faucet that couldn’t be shut off.
“The chemistry between us is so intense it scares me to death. I’ve never felt anything like it. He’s like a drug to my system. When he’s near me, I involuntarily tremble. Never in my life have I felt anything this powerful.”
Annie straightened her back in the chair. “But, you know what?” she shrugged. “None of that really matters now because we can’t be together. Michael says the contest rules forbid any personal contact.”
“Well, I haven’t read the contract but I’m willing to bet Mike is right. It makes sense that there’d be a clause like that built into the contract. And I’d also say, by the look I saw on his face the other day, he definitely has feelings for you too. Why else would he threaten me like that?”
Annie rolled her eyes. “If he feels anything, it’s lust, something he probably feels several times a week with a different girl each time!”
Sammy chuckled. “Mike is not the playboy you think he is. A lot of that has been seriously blown out of proportion in the media because it looks better for his stage image. Sure, he’s had his shar
e of women, but it’s been a while since I’ve seen him with anyone at all. Truth be told, I know for a fact that Mike is tired of going home to an empty house. We’ve had many conversations about it. He wants the whole Norman Rockwell thing, a wife, two-point-two kids and a dog,” Sammy joked. “Most would look at him and think he’s a guy with everything, but for the last five years he’s been pretty lonely.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I know he wants to settle down. But he hasn’t been able to find the right woman to settle down with - yet. Maybe you’ll be the one to change that for him.”
“Don’t even joke about that.”
Sammy’s gaze turned serious. “I wasn’t.”
A paused settled between them. She shifted uneasily in her chair. Sammy sat quietly, looking out the window at the rain.
“I’m sure Michael would be furious if he knew I was talking to you about this,”Annie said. “And I’ve probably said much more than I should have.”
“Yeah, he would be pissed. I’ve known Mike for a long time and he’s always been a very private man. I think the only person he’s ever opened up to is Brian.”
Annie wiped her eyes again. “Did you know Beth?”
“Shit! Yeah. I’ve known Mike since before he was married to Beth - back when Thrust was just getting started. I’m dating myself by admitting that, but what the hell.”
“So you knew his ex-wife?”
“Yep, and I didn’t like her either. No one did. She was the bitch from hell.”
“I can’t imagine Michael being with someone like that.”
“Drugs will do crazy things to your brain and cloud otherwise good judgment,” Sammy said. “Thank God we all survived when so many others didn’t.”
“You too?” Annie asked.
“It wasn’t possible to hang around with Thrust back then and not be a user of some chemical. But that was then and this is now and I should get going. I believe the rain has stopped and you should try and get some sleep.” Sammy stood and walked toward the kitchen door.