by R. H. Vesely
"Praise the lord and pass the ammunition," yelled Bill.
Allie had just been sitting there thinking after Kelley left the table. Occasionally she would shoot a quick glance over at Kelley's table. She had to agree, that woman radiated exactly what men want, crazy sex. Also, from the brief conversation they had just had, she could tell the damn girl was smart to boot. What chance did she have against this incredibly young hot thing. I'm out of my league here. I can't compete with that. What the hell was I thinking taking up with this young guy.
The music started with a long intro that began with the bass and then fed in the keyboard, drums and finally Bill's guitar. It then faded down to just the bass and Toni took the stage. True to form, for the next hour Toni commanded the stage tearing the soul and sexual drive out of everyone in Deposit. She was a force of nature and Bill's perfectly placed riffs deepened and strengthened her power. The place went wild with one young guy repeatedly screaming between songs "stop it you're killing me" to which Toni replied at once, "that's the point baby".
At the break, Toni and Bill came out with towels draped around their necks still pouring sweat and sat down with Tom and Allie.
"So what'd you think Tommy?" said Toni with a smile, as she gave Tom a sweat soaked kiss.
"There will be a lot of young men going to bed tonight thinking only of you, my love and I will be among them," said Tom.
"What'd you think Allie?" said Bill with a big smile, as he touched her hand and leaned over to kiss her but she pulled back and turned her head so he just grazed her cheek.
"You were both incredible. Way beyond what I expected and your guitar work fit perfectly," said Allie with a pleasant smile.
"Yeah, it was great fun and I am so glad you came, you can't imagine. It gives you power and makes your playing have emotional sense when you can look out and see someone who you care deeply about," said Bill, as he retook Allie's hand and gave it a soft squeeze.
"So Toni, what are you going to do for the second set. I mean where are you going to get the energy for more?" said Allie looking at Toni.
Toni did not respond. Toni had taken immediate note of how Allie had withdrawn from Bill. This was completely the opposite of how she had been with him the last time they were together. Toni had never seen her so physically amorous, relaxed and happy with a man before. It had brought a smile of contentment to her and Tom's faces. So what the fuck was going on here. It had to be the presence of Kelley and this was confirmed when she noticed that Allie was deliberately leaning to the side in a way that would give Bill a clear view of Kelley. She knew exactly what Allie was doing. She was trying to pull back, to protect herself and push Bill towards Kelley to complete her self fulfilling prophecy. Damn her, thought Toni. The problem isn't with Bill, its her.
"Bill aren't you going to go over and say hello to Randy? We talked earlier and he is real excited to see you," said Allie.
"Sure, in a minute, I wanted to be with you first hon," smiled Bill.
"That's ok, I don't mind. We'll be here all night," said Allie.
Jesus Christ, this has to stop and it has to stop now thought Toni. This is beyond stupid. "Hey Allie, I need to go to the bathroom, why don't you come with me, we can talk and you can help me beat back the adoring fans?" laughed Toni.
"Sure, that'll give Bill a chance to talk to Randy, Kelley and Mattie," said Allie.
Damn girl, if you weren't my best friend, I'd reach over and slap you right now, thought Toni.
Bill waited until the two were out of sight and then went over to say hi to Randy.
"Wow man that was incredible, truly amazing," said Randy, as he stood up and gave Bill a hug.
"It brought tears to my eyes seeing you up there playing so beautifully," said Kelley, as she quickly stood up and gave Bill a hug and a kiss and used his towel to softly wipe some sweat from his brow.
"Gee, thanks, I love it. This is my true passion and god, getting to do it with Toni and her band is heaven on earth. She is unbelievable," said Bill, as he slid a chair in between Randy and Mattie and sat down. Bill was doing everything he could to keep this awkward situation under control but at the same time despite himself he could not help noting how blazingly hot and sexual Kelley looked. Woof, he thought to himself.
"Ok, Allie, I know what the hell you are doing and damn it stop it. If you don't, I promise you next set I am going to take the microphone and call you out in front of all these people. In case you haven't noticed, Bill is head over heels with you and here you are deliberately fucking it up," said Toni, as she pulled Allie into a corner by the bar.
"Gee Toni, I don't know what you are talking about. I'm not having any problem. I love the music and am just enjoying getting out with friends," said Allie.
"Don't know what I am talking about, don't insult me. But ok, then here is what I am talking about. You saw that incredibly hot girl Kelley with the nubile young come fuck me look and dress and you said to yourself, what chance do I have against something like that. So then you decided in a fit of giving up and protecting yourself emotionally that you would act like you didn't care and even go one step further and try to push Bill towards her so that you can prove to yourself that you were right, that you were no match for her and that he would dump you for her. Do you know what I am talking about now you liar," said Toni staring into Allies eyes.
"Ok, Ok, so you know what I think that doesn't change the reality. What chance do I have against that young thing. I mean really," said Allie.
"Listen babe, you not only have a chance, you have her beat. Bill could have been with her the whole time he has been with you if he wanted. Tom and I both see that Bill is gonzo over you in a way we have never seen before and I would say that I also have never seen you react to a man the way you react to Bill. He doesn't want to be with Kelley. He desperately and I mean desperately wants to be with you. Now you're a big girl, so you can completely fuck this up if you want. You can treat him coldly and try to force him out of caring for you but understand Allie, it's you doing that, not him, and if you throw this away, I seriously doubt if you will find something better or anywhere near as good. So grow up and get in there girl and let him love you. Throw caution to the wind, let yourself possibly be hurt but also let yourself possibly be happy," as she completed this Toni gave Allie a big hug with a tear sliding slowly down her cheek.
"I appreciate what you are saying but I just don't think I have it in me to make that leap, sorry," said Allie sadly.
"Ok, enough, I actually do have to pee. I'll be right back," said Toni.
The second set was slower, more ballads and three or four of Bill's songs that were so melodic and sensual that you could see tears in some of the women's eyes. After his last one, that was a particularly moving story about unrequited love, Toni took the microphone.
"Ok, were going to close out this set with a little up tempo Bonnie Raitt song. I'm sending this out for my best friend in the whole world Allie and please don't hate me for this Allie but you can't say I didn't warn you it was coming. You see Allie is here and scared to admit that she is in love with another dear friend of mine. I happen to know he feels the same way, but even if he didn't Allie, you have to let yourself run with those feelings of love. There is nothing better or more worthwhile in this world, right Tom. So if you are lucky enough to have the real thing come your way you'd be telling the universe to go fuck itself if you didn't grab it and that's not a good thing to do. So enjoy it and grab it Allie. My dear friend Bill will help me out with this one and jump in on the chorus."
As the drums and bass laid down their funk beat, Toni belted out Love Sneekin Up on You. The crowd cheered wildly and Allie despite being beet red had an enormous smile on her face. Kelley was not so moved.
Chapter 32
Now one might have thought that Kelley would be devastated by what happened at the end of the second set but one would be wrong. She now just knew for sure who her competition was and now she needed to formulate a plan. Allie was undeniabl
y good looking, but she was not hot like Kelley. Allie was smart, maybe even a bit smarter than Kelley, but did she know how to use it. Kelley had noted how she reacted to Bill when he came out after the first set. She was rattled, confused and pulled back from Bill. So Kelley thought to herself this is where I can beat her. She is still unsure about Bill and if she could feed into this insecurity, this older woman might bale. But she knew she had to do this without going directly after Bill. Bill did not even come over to their table after the second set, just waved over to Randy.
The third set started launching into raucous zydeco and people started immediately dancing.
"Hey, Mattie we haven't danced in a long time, let's go hit the dance floor," laughed Kelley, pulling Mattie up out of her chair.
Kelley danced like a wild woman, smiling and laughing with Mattie who was equally off, loving the music. Randy quickly jumped in to lose himself in the joy that was Mattie. Kelley soon used this as an opportunity to pull Oscar out onto the dance floor. So now, unless Allie wanted to dance with Caitlin, she was stuck because Tom did not look like the dancing type. He wasn't.
As the band went into one of Bill's hard driving tunes, Kelley moved Oscar, Mattie and Randy up close to the stage. Bill was completely lost in his playing, pounding on his guitar and almost laughing as he screamed out his vocals, smiling at the dancing mass. A mass that included Kelley and Oscar dead in front of him. Oscar was in heaven, as Kelley, hair flying and dress twirling danced her beautiful ass off.
Allie was sitting at the table taking this all in and dying to dance, Tom had twice rejected her entreaties. She finally turned to Caitlin.
"Caitlin, fuck him, I need to dance," said Allie, as she grabbed Caitlin's hand and pulled her out onto the dance floor. Caitlin was dancing whether she liked it or not. Allie immediately moved to the front of the mass pulling Caitlin behind her. If one had seen Allie in her white coat and stethoscope one would never have known what lurked within. Allie started slowly to gyrate and then she let loose. You could tell by the smile on her face that she was lost in the rhythms as she completely let herself go. Her dancing was a thing of beauty, perfectly in sync with the lyrics and the rhythms. Toni yelled down from the stage "you go Allie" as Bill poured his soul into his songs. Eventually Allie and Mattie ended up dancing almost together with Randy off to the side. The two of them, Allie and Mattie, seemed to have the exact same feeling of enjoyment and totally letting go of themselves as they danced. In between songs, they would stand and smile at each other in a sort of recognition of emotional similarity at that moment. Allie had taken off her shirt and was now in just a tank top with the shirt tied around her waist, using it occasionally to wipe the sweat from her face.
This was not going as Kelley had planned, so she played the only card she had left which was Oscar. Much to Oscar's delight, she started doing her dancing around and on him as she slid up and down his front and back as her dress rode up the top of her thighs. Oscar gladly went with the flow, occasionally sliding his hand across her ass and wrapping his arm around her waist. There was not likely a happier man on the dance floor. The set ended with a cover of Bowie's Young Americans and by then everyone who was left was on the dance floor created a huge gyrating mass. As Toni and Bill had promised, they rocked them out the door.
As they all headed back to the tables Kelley passed Allie and said simply "nice dancing lady". The mingling crowd slowly drifted out towards the exits. Mattie, Randy and Kelley sat at their table exhausted dripping sweat and drinking the pitcher of beer they had gotten at last call.
"God, that felt so good. To just let the emotions fly and dance my ass off," smiled Mattie putting her arm around Randy and giving him a big squeeze.
"Babe, you were amazing. I could not keep up with you and Kelley. You were in the zone," laughed Randy.
"Boy that Allie can dance, can't she. Who would have thought," said Kelley, thinking that at least she maybe planted the seed, not like she had hoped, but time would tell, time would tell.
"Yeah, she was really into it, wasn't she," said Mattie. Randy said nothing more.
"Wow, Allie, I had no idea you could dance like that," said Tom.
"Yeah, haven't done that in a while. God you should have seen Toni and me at dances when we were younger. Now that was something to behold," laughed Allie, as she wiped her face with her shirt.
"I don't think I have ever danced like that before," exclaimed Oscar.
"I am quite sure you never have. That woman was wringing you dry," said Caitlin.
"Yeah, I don't think I have another ounce of energy in me," laughed Oscar.
"I think you are lucky you got out alive," droned Tom.
"She is a piece of work isn't she," said Allie, but thinking, well let's see how she does with that. I'm not going to give up so easily, bitch. Oh, god Allie lighten up what the hell are you thinking, she said to herself.
Toni and Bill then came out to the table obviously completely drained but high from the performance.
"Love, I think that was the best show I have ever seen," said Tom.
"Thanks hon, now if I could only get Bill to join us full time," said Toni.
"Boy, yeah Bill wouldn't that be great. You two were such a perfect mix. I agree with Tom, I think that may have been the best show I have ever seen, bar none," said Allie, as she leaned over and gave him a kiss.
"Yeah, well thanks. I have to say I can't remember when I have had more fun. It was special and thanks Toni you are the best," said Bill as he hugged Toni and gave her a big kiss on her salty cheek.
"Back at you Bill," said Toni with smile.
"Bill, Toni you were the best," said Kelly, as she gave Bill a kiss from behind.
"I second that, I feel truly lucky to have seen you guys tonight," said Randy.
"Amen, I can't even find the words, I was overwhelmed," said Mattie with a giant smile on her face.
"Ok, well I think we better head out. What do you say Randy, Mattie, I am wiped out from all that dancing. Nice to meet you all, especially you Oscar, and have a good night," said Kelley, as she gave Bill's shoulder a soft squeeze and turned slowly to leave, smoothing her dress down as she walked away.
"Well, I am whipped but wired. What say we all head back to our place drink some cold beer, eat some of Tom's fabulous food and enjoy each others company," said Toni.
"Great a perfect end to the evening. I'll ride with Allie, I am too beat to drive. Ok with you love", said Bill, as he flopped his arm around Allie.
"Love it, let's go old man," said Allie, as she put her arm around Bill and jokingly helped him to his feet.
Ia - Ok a little bit of my feeling sad for Kelley is starting to dissipate. Maybe she is as crazy as her mother or maybe she is just a drama queen. She may need to be screwing with men just to somehow validate herself or feel like she is in control. It is starting to look a bit sick to me and I never thought I'd say this but I'm actually feeling sorry for old Bill. He may be smart and seemingly getting in touch with his better part but he is also a man and Kelley certainly seems to have the goods to fuck him up.
In - Maybe but I think you and Allie and Kelly may be underestimating Bill.
Ia - Really, well I can tell you, all he needs to do is make one stupid move and Allie is Bye Bye. Kelley probably is aware of that and will make it happen, trust me.
In - Oh so you're an expert now huh.
Ia - Look you saw what she did to poor Oscar. That boy doesn't know which end is up and like I said Bill is a man and one who is not a stranger to lust. Frankly, I told you before if that Kelley is in the equation you should be looking at a different pair. She is out of control and has been since she dumped Pat.
Chapter 33
Things were moving quickly. Pat and Betsy had already made several improvements. They had added a small holder that contained a few small strips of the velvet like half of velcro. With use, they had discovered that the little plastic hooks tended to catch on things and collect lint from pockets so they needed
a cover. Through trial and error they determined a full piece of the soft side was too hard to separate and had arrived at just the right amount to keep it covered but easily used. Everyone who tried it so far had marveled at how perfect it made their hair look and how it did not break hairs when going through tangles. They had made it far more clean and solid looking and added a "professional model", and a "purse model" to the original pocket model. Production had started with large cutting machines for the individual pieces, though all the assembly was done by hand.
On the marketing side Betsy had already had a meeting with Sharper Image as well as a few chains of hair salons. She had even taken a meeting with a TV marketing company. All meetings had gone well with the help of Stan's investment group and so the ability to market was not the issue. The issue was where and how to market. Sharper Image wanted a two year exclusive, the TV guys a one year exclusive and the Hair salons wanted it only be marketed in hair salons for a one year period. They had also asked for a version that had a handle so it had the feel of a brush.
Betsy with the help of Stan had done some hard bargaining and they settled on a deal where Sharper Image would market the whole line but have an exclusive on the high end professional model, the hair salons would be the only ones with the brushes and the remaining production would be marketed through drug stores. Their biggest worry at this point was production because they had to guarantee the ability to produce all told at least a quarter of a million units in the first year. Pat was in charge of production but at Stan's insistence had hired Fred a skilled person to manage the factory. The profit margin was to be from two to fifteen dollars depending on the unit. Stan, Betsy and Pat were having their weekly meeting to see how things were going.
"God babe, I have never worked so hard on anything in my friggin life. I have to admit I am scared shitless about meeting production," said Pat.
"Babe you have got to relax. Remember this is supposed to be fun," said Betsy.