by Ryan, Rachel
"I'll come and get you in half an hour, is that long enough?"
"Yeah, should be. Thanks stud."
Shutting the door behind me I walk over to where our bus is parked.
"Good you two are ready so we can all focus on me. What am I going to wear?"
"I think you should wear that blue dress that shows off your cleavage."
Shrugging I get the dress out of the back room. "I think I'm going to straighten my hair and go with a smoky look tonight."
"That sounds great I'll do your hair and Em can do your makeup.
Laughing I look at Tori "You two are amazing." While they do my hair and makeup I fill them in on my day.
Chapter 14
Jeremy
The second Ava steps down from the bus I am so close to cancelling our plans tonight and dragging her back onto the bus to show her all night long just how sexy I think she is. She is dressed in an amazing blue dress that shows off her best assets, her generous chest and long, slender, golden legs. She is so close to perfect I'm left speechless as she walks towards me, her dark hair, which has been straightened swaying along with her curvy hips. Her eye make-up makes her amber eyes look even more beautiful than they normally do, and I am lost in them as she stares up at me.
"What do you think stud? Will this do?"
I shake my head at her "Fuck, Baby. I don't know how I am going to keep my hands off you tonight. You look good enough to eat." I run my tongue over my bottom lip as I imagine how she would taste.
She blushes and looks around at the guys and Tori and Emma, who are all standing around watching our exchange with amused expressions.
"Okay, let's get out of here." Brody encourages as he turns in the direction of our waiting limo.
***
A couple of hours later, we are all seated at a large round table in a small bar that is bursting at the seams with people. There is a rock band playing and they actually aren't too bad, but all the attention seems to be reserved for us tonight. The minute we walked in the door, people flocked to us for autographs and photos and forty minutes later they are only just settling down and leaving us alone. I can't help but notice a small group of girls sitting across the other side of the room that haven't taken their eyes off us the whole time we've been here. I'm perched on a stool with Ava standing between my legs, her back to me as she is laughing at something Tori is saying. I love the sound of her laugh, it makes me smile.
As I reach for my beer I lose my balance and almost fall off my stool. Damn, maybe I shouldn't have had all that champagne with dinner. We had decided to do some celebrating and had gone through eight bottles of expensive champagne. So at the moment I'm feeling happy and very light headed. I steady myself on the stool and apologize to Ava for almost knocking her over. She turns her body and wraps her arms around my waist as she gazes at my face.
"Geez, stud. Can't hold your liquor, hey? Do you need me to hold you up on your stool?" I press a soft kiss to her sultry lips and chuckle.
"Maybe we should call it a night and head back to your bus, Dundee and you can take care of me. Or maybe, I could take care of you all night." I run my hands up her waist and brush the back of my hand just under the curve of her breast as she gasps.
"Down boy." She giggles as she pushes my hand back down and turns around leaning back gently against my chest. I wrap an arm around her shoulder and glance at the group of girls sitting across the room. A girl with deep red hair catches my attention as she laughs at something her friend said and our eyes meet across the room. She is wearing a tight fitting black leather mini skirt and a black low cut top, which she is almost falling out of. She is very attractive. She gives me a seductive smile and I grin back at her. A throat clears to my left and I see Brody watching me with a frown on his face.
Rolling my eyes at Brody, I throw back the rest of my beer and announce that I'm going to the bar for another one. As I slowly make my way to the bar I notice the red head is also heading the same way.
"Hey, another beer please." I smile at the barmaid as she places a bottle in front of me on the bar. While I'm taking a sip I feel a hand wrap around my waist and smile to myself.
"Did you miss me, Dundee?" I turn around and stare into bright green eyes "Oh, you aren't Dundee!" It's the red head and she is grinning up at me as her hand slowly creeps lower down my abs. I grab her hand just before it reaches my groin area.
"Can I help you?"
Brody
Watching Ava, I notice her smile falter as she watches the red head approach Jeremy at the bar. Damn it! She doesn't need to watch this. The red head runs her hand down Jeremy's waist and I try to distract Ava.
"So, Ava, Do you feel like going for a jog in the morning?'
She tears her eyes away from Jeremy and faces me with a smile that no longer reaches her eyes. "Um… sure, Brody. That will be good." Her eyes stray back in the direction of the bar and I glance over to see Jeremy smiling down at the red head and her hand is now on his chest. Fuck, Jeremy! Walk away from the skank! I shouldn't have let him drink so much over dinner, but he just seemed so happy. Ava has really had a good effect on him lately. Up until tonight he hasn't really been drinking much and he seems to have really put a stop to the man-whore behavior. I really hope for Ava's sake that he can change for her.
The red head is now leaning right into Jeremy and the fucking idiot is just standing there letting her.
"Ava come dance with me." Her head snaps to mine and she looks quite shocked as she processes my request.
"What?'
"I said 'come dance with me'." Grabbing her hand I pull her over to the small dance floor and place my hands gently on her waist as the band starts playing a slow rock ballad.
She stands still for a moment before eventually starting a slow sway of her hips.
I pull her closer to me as I whisper in her ear "Don't let it bother you. He really likes you, you know."
Her sad smile lets me know she knows exactly what I'm talking about. "It doesn't bother me. We aren't even exclusive. He hasn't made me any promises." She glances up at me and I shake my head.
"I've never seen him act this way over a woman before. He really cares about you."
"You don't have to say that to make me feel better, Brody." She looks down at the floor and I gently lift her chin so she is staring into my eyes.
"I'm not just saying it to make you feel better. He really is different since you came into his life. You kind of have that effect on people."
I drop my hand from her chin and feel a hand on my shoulder. "What's going on?"
Turning around I see Jeremy standing behind me with a slight frown on his face.
"I was just keeping Ava occupied while you were getting your drink." I say in a soft voice. "But, she's all yours."
Glancing back at Ava, I give her a wink and stroll back to the table leaving them on the dance floor.
Jeremy
I can't explain the feeling inside me when I spotted Ava dancing with Brody. Was it jealousy? I know they were just dancing, but the way they were looking into each other's eyes made them look more like a couple. They didn't notice but I had been standing there watching them for a couple of minutes before making them aware of my presence. The way Brody had touched her… and the way she had gazed into his eyes…Maybe it's just the alcohol causing my imagination to run wild.
Wrapping my arm around Ava's waist, I pull her body up against mine. "Hey, are you okay, Baby?"
She glances up at my face and then quickly looks away. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"Are you sure? You seem a little quiet."
She shakes her head "No…it's nothing. I'm fine. Just tired, that's all."
Grabbing her hand I drag her off the dance floor and toward our table, where Tori and Hunter are practically fucking and Emma, Luke and Brody are sitting huddled in conversation.
"Hey, guys. We're going to head back to the bus. We'll send the limo back for you." I don't bother asking them if they want to come with us. Ava and I
need some alone time.
The ride back to the bus is silent, she is holding my hand and letting me cuddle up to her, but she is staring out of her window and not making any conversation at all. What the fuck have I done to upset her? I try to remember everything that has happened tonight, but for the life of me can't think of anything that would have pissed her off. Hopefully when we get back to the bus we can have a chat and try to sort this out.
The limo pulls up beside my bus and Ava practically jumps out and heads off toward her bus. Leaning back down into the car I ask the driver to head back to the bar and wait for our friends, then I run to catch up to Ava. "Hey, Dundee, where's the fire?'
"What?"
"Why are you in such a hurry?"
"I'm not in a hurry. I'm just tired, like I told you before." She goes to turn away from me again and I wrap my arms around her waist and pull her back to me. "Ava, have I done something that upset you?"
She sighs and shakes her head. "No, you haven't done anything. It's just…it was just a little hard to watch those girls all over you tonight. It's just my stupid insecurities rising to the surface."
I know she must think I'm an asshole, but this makes me smile. "Were you jealous, baby?"
Her brows draw together and she places her hands on her hips. "No, I'm not jealous at all. It was just the first time I have seen you with that many fans hanging all over you. Some of those girls just don't know when to quit."
I know she's feeling angry, but her jealousy is making me feel so happy. She must care about me if she's feeling this strongly about it.
"Baby, you have no reason to be jealous. Those girls don't interest me. I'm hooked on you." Leaning in, I stare into her beautiful eyes as I kiss her soft lips. "I mean it, Ava. I can't get enough of you."
She studies my face as if she's trying to determine whether I'm telling the truth or not and then eventually nods her head and leans her forehead against mine.
"Can I come in with you? Keep you company until the girls get back?"
She is silent for a few seconds. "No that's okay. I was planning on doing some work anyway. You go to bed, sleep off all the alcohol you've consumed tonight."
Frowning, I nod my head "Okay, Baby. I'll see you tomorrow."
She turns around and mounts the steps to her bus and as she closes the door, she gives me a little wave.
With my head down I stroll over to my bus, climb the stairs and throw myself onto one of the leather armchairs. Closing my eyes I recall the events of the night and wonder if there was more to Ava's strange behavior.
Brody
Luke, Hunter and I say goodnight to the girls and climb up onto our bus. I was kind of expecting Ava to be with Jeremy and had no idea what we would find when we arrived back. So I'm a little surprised to find Jeremy passed out on one of our armchairs. Chuckling to myself, I walk over to the fridge and grab an ice cold beer. Joining Hunter on the couch I toss my bottle top at Jeremy and laugh as it bounces off his forehead. Jeremy stirs and looks around at us like he has no recollection of where he is. "Hey, what's going on?" He rubs his eyes and straightens up in his seat.
Hunter places his feet up on the coffee table and questions Jeremy "We just got back. Where's your woman?"
Jeremy looks down at the floor "Oh…she said she had some work to do."
Hunter chuckles "At 11:30 at night? Dude, that's cold."
Jeremy looks perplexed "What do you mean?"
"She's not working, that's just an excuse. She must really be pissed."
"Hunter!" I give Hunter a stern look, warning him to be quiet.
Jeremy glances between both of us. "Why would she be pissed?"
Luke has just walked out of the bathroom and sits down on the armchair opposite Jeremy and has to throw in his two cents. "Maybe it's because of that hot chick you were chatting up."
Jeremy looks confused "Which hot chick? I wasn't chatting up anyone."
Luke reminds Jeremy "Yeah, that red head. Fuck she was mighty fine."
Jeremy is silent for a few seconds "Ohh, her. I wasn't fucking chatting her up."
Hunter shakes his head "She had her hands all over you and you didn't really do much to stop her. Ava was watching the whole thing and she didn't look too happy."
I'm starting to feel sorry for Jeremy as he is sitting there looking so clueless. I don't know if it's the alcohol, but he doesn't seem to get it.
"Guys let's drop it. It's none of our business." Hunter and Luke stare at me and then both rise to their feet muttering their apologies to Jeremy and make their way to the bunks.
I sit there watching Jeremy for a minute and I can imagine the negative thoughts going through his mind. Scooting over on the lounge so I'm sitting closer to his armchair I lean forward and rest my elbows on my thighs.
"Hey, man. Don't worry, it will be fine. She's not pissed. You just need to show her that you care about her."
"I need to go and talk to her. Explain that nothing was going on." As he starts to rise from his chair I gently push him back down.
"Wait until tomorrow, when you're sober."
"I need to go and tell her how much she means to me, how much I like her."
"Dude, she knows. You just need to show her. You've got this amazing, beautiful girl, now you need to treat her like she deserves to be treated…with respect."
Jeremy's eyes snap to mine. "You're right, Brody. Thanks man. You're a great friend."
A buzzing in my pocket pulls my attention away from Jeremy and as I look down and see a text from Ava asking what time we should meet up for our jog in the morning, I feel like I'm betraying my friend. I quickly text back a reply '6am' and tuck my phone back in my pocket.
Jeremy watches me closely "Who was that?"
My eyes don't meet his as I reply "No one. Just some girl I met tonight."
***
Last night I set my alarm on my phone for 5:45 but at 5:40 I switch it off. I didn't really need it, as I've been awake for almost an hour after a pretty restless night. I'm feeling quite anxious and I don't know if it's because I'm going to be spending time alone with Ava, or because I feel like I'm betraying my friend.
I jump out of bed, making sure to be quiet and throw on some black running shorts and shoes. I exit the bus and head towards Ava's as I pull my white t-shirt over my head. It's pretty warm outside already this morning, so I may have to lose the shirt later. I look up to see Ava standing outside her bus watching me.
"Good morning."
"Hey, Ava. How did you sleep?"
"I didn't." She gives me a small smile. I study her closely and notice she does look kind of tired. She still looks beautiful though. As my eyes wander further down I notice she is wearing a tight pink running tank and matching pink and black yoga pants that show off her curvy figure. Dragging my eyes back to hers, I realize she is watching me ogle her body, with a slight smile on her face.
"Okay, let's go."
We jog around the narrow streets of downtown Portland and discuss everything from our favorite authors to our most embarrassing moments and I really feel like we're beginning to establish a friendship. This girl is amazing and I really enjoy spending time with her. Jeremy is a lucky guy. As we jog across the Hawthorne Bridge Ava pulls up and puts her hands on her hips as she struggles to catch her breath.
"Ava, are you okay? Maybe we should slow it down and take it easy on the way back?"
She glances up at me as she takes a swig from her water bottle. "I'm fine."
My eyes are drawn to her slender golden neck as she is swallowing her water and she catches me watching her again.
"What?" she asks with a shy smile.
"You look really pretty today."
She throws her head back and laughs "Are you kidding me? I've had no sleep, I'm sweating like a pig and my hair is frizzy. What is pretty about that?"
Stepping closer to her I look down into her eyes. "Ava, you are beautiful, even when you are sweating like a pig. And I love your hair."
She blushe
s and looks away "You always know what to say to make me feel better, Brody."
"Come on. Let's head back." I can feel the sweat running down my back and the sun has really got some fierce heat to it today, so I pull off my shirt and tuck it into the waistband of my shorts. During the twenty five minute jog back to the buses, a few times I look over at Ava to find her watching me and I curse myself for how happy that makes me feel.
Chapter 15
Ava
Closing the lid to my laptop I can't help think back to how busy the last few days have been. The Portland shows were really good, Jeremy had the crowd eating out of the palm of his hand; they absolutely loved him. The shows have also been getting some really good reviews online and in the newspapers. At the end of the second show we went out to a nightclub again and so many people flocked to the band members, their popularity has really skyrocketed since the beginning of the tour. I guess with their album rising so quickly in the charts, they're going to be recognized a lot more. The drive to Seattle was quite short and once we arrived, the guys revealed that we would each be staying in our own hotel room. Thank god. I love Emma and Tori but it's nice to have a bit of space to myself, there will be no distractions and I might actually get a little work done. I skipped the show last night so I could focus on my work. The article I'm currently working on includes some details about what goes on behind the scenes of these concerts, containing some interviews with the roadies and Emma and Tori. For this particular piece I haven't needed to spend much time with the band.
To be totally honest, I have actually been avoiding Jeremy a little since the incident with the red head. It's not that I'm hurt or upset that he was talking with her or the fact he was letting her run her hands all over his body, I understand that he is famous and there are going to be girls all over him, I just don't know if my heart would handle it if what we have developed into something more and I had to witness that kind of affection towards him by other girls all the time. He really seems to thrive on that kind of attention, and I know he wasn't intentionally trying to upset me, but it was hard to watch, especially after the intimate moments we have recently shared.