When she’d spoken, he’d thought of Katie, remembering the way she spoke with that same slow, soft rhythm, the vowels rich as melted chocolate. He thought of her face, her hair, her body; and he knew the groupie would have to go. No matter how badly his body needed release, he wouldn’t take it with someone else while thinking of Katie. There was no way he’d disrespect her like that.
Pushing himself away from the door, he resumed his pacing. Katie was aware of what he did when he was on the road. She wasn’t stupid. In fact, she was the least stupid person he’d ever known. That was why his groupies, in addition to looking nothing like Katie, were the most empty-headed girls he could find. He didn’t want them to think, or to talk, or to make him laugh. They were only there to relieve his pent-up energy, nothing more.
Fists clenched, he came to a halt next to the bed. He expected the top of his head to fly off at any moment. He had to … had to … He had to hear Katie’s voice. The minute he’d thought of her voice in his ear, he felt the beast begin to settle and the urge to rend and tear fled.
He sat on the edge of the bed and picked up the phone. The front desk answered with quick efficiency and he asked to be put through to the overseas operator. He didn’t know what time it was, but it had to be very late. Consequently, it would be very early in London, but it was imperative he hear her voice.
After an interval that seemed like days, the burr of a ringing phone sounded in his ear. He lit a cigarette as he counted the rings — one, two, three, four. The fifth was cut off in mid-ring and a sleepy voice came down the line. “H’lo?”
More of his tension fled at the sound and he sighed in relief. “I would give anything I own to be there with you right now.”
“I’d give anything I own to have you here.” Katie’s voice was full of sleep, but there was surprise there, too. “Good grief, baby, what time is it? Is everything all right?”
“Everything’s fine,” he assured her. “We had a great show tonight. In fact, it was one of the best we’ve played. But we’re in Mobile, Alabama and hearing the way they talk made me crazy to hear your voice.” Jay took a deep drag off his cigarette. “I’m sorry I woke you.”
“I’m not.” The sound of rustling bedclothes came through the phone and he smiled, imagining her rearranging the pillows. “Call me anytime you want. I love hearing your voice.”
Jay smiled and closed his eyes. “And I love hearing yours. So tell me, what have you been doing?” As she told him all the things she’d done to the house and about the innovative new designs Maureen had come up with, he could picture the beast curling up into a small ball. No one but Katie could comfort him, make him feel calm in the storm that raged around him. Although he was filled with longing to see her, to feel her in his arms, at least he could hear her and know that everything would be okay. He crushed his cigarette in the ashtray. “I can’t wait to see it all. A couple more days, and I’ll be home.”
“I know, I’m counting them. I mean that literally, too.” The soft sound of her laughter tickled his ear. “I have a calendar and I mark them off every night.”
Jay chuckled. “If I had a calendar, I’d do the same thing.”
“You sound tired. Are you sleeping okay?”
“No,” he admitted. “But I think I can sleep now. I love you, Katie.”
“I love you, too.”
Smiling, Jay hung up the phone, the peace he’d been craving flowing through him. Without bothering to undress, he lay down, switched off the lamp and pulling the pillow into his arms closed his eyes.
• • •
“We’ll not be going home on Thursday, lads.”
Grumbling met Walter’s announcement as Shadowed Knight expressed their irritation. Each member of the band took the opportunity to berate their manager for adding yet one more show to their schedule, postponing again their return to London. Each member, that is, except Jay. He alone remained silent, and it was evident Walter was aware of it from the way his eyes kept darting to the corner in which Jay sat.
After doing what he could to placate the band and quiet their complaints, nothing of which was very effective, Walter watched as Stuart, George, Nicky and Adam stomped from the room.
Jay noted with wry amusement that Walter made a big show of straightening the rumpled bedclothes, acting as if he didn’t realize Jay was still there. He kept his eyes pinned to the manager’s wiry form knowing Walter’s nervousness increased with every moment Jay remained silent. Finally, as he knew it would, it became too much for Walter and he faced Jay with a huge, fake smile. “Jay! I didn’t see you there.” His smile faltered a bit at Jay’s continued silence. “I don’t think that went too badly, do you?”
“I’m not doing it.” Jay forestalled any comment with nothing more than a lift of his eyebrows. “I’ve told you I dislike your adding dates without consulting us beforehand. And I’ve told you to stop doing it. You, though, seem to have a problem with following orders and now you’re going to have to pay for it. I’m not playing that extra date.” Having delivered his ultimatum, Jay rose from his chair, but Walter’s next words froze him in place.
“It’s in Birmingham, Alabama.”
An ugly suspicion began to grow in Jay’s mind and was confirmed as Walter continued, his chin lifted with defiance.
“Katie was thrilled you want her to come see you play in her hometown when I called and told her. I got her a flight into Atlanta and from there into Birmingham. We’ll swing by and pick her up on the way to the motel.”
Jay barely heard the details of the flight plans through the roaring in his mind. He glared at Walter with real hatred, not trusting himself to speak.
“Look, Jay, we need this.” Walter appeared oblivious to the fact that Jay wanted to kill him on the spot. “Zeppelin’s tour kicks off in fuckin’ Carnegie Hall on Friday and we can’t afford to let any publicity before then go to waste. Any buzz we can generate can’t help but be good. Right? And when I heard it was in Birmingham, I thought it would be nice for Katie to join us like she did the first time we played Hamburg.”
Jay made the proper synapses fire in his brain so he could stand. How he wanted to fire Walter on the spot! But he couldn’t, not without the approval of the others. And they wouldn’t understand Jay’s anger at what just happened. “You thought no such thing,” he snarled. “You only knew I’d have to stay if you dragged Katie into it, you little bastard.” He pointed a shaking finger at his manager. “Stay the fuck away from me.” He left the room, venting his anger on the door he slammed so hard the windows rattled in their aluminum frames.
The narrow concrete balcony that stretched outside their rooms was deserted. Jay stalked past the closed doors until he was a good distance from Walter’s room and gripped the rusted iron railing with such force his fingers should have left imprints. Sorry as he was about it, he knew the people in Tallahassee would be getting a bum show that night. He was so angry at Walter’s actions he couldn’t work up any enthusiasm for the upcoming concert. Perhaps he would mention to Adam he wasn’t feeling well. If his poor performance became noticeable, Adam could make excuse during the banter he riffed between songs.
Releasing the railing, he straightened and put his hands in his pockets. He hated to be controlled by others; he’d fought against it since he was a child trying to escape his father’s rigid ideals. Walter’s ignoring Jay’s edicts was bad enough, but using Katie as a pawn in his schemes had crossed a line. Just thinking about Katie being employed as a device to control him made him clench his fists with renewed anger. She was the most precious thing in his life and he’d protect her from Walter’s machinations, no matter the cost to himself.
With a sigh he turned and started toward his room. The whirlwind of emotions had left him drained and all he wanted was a nap. Perhaps he’d dream about Katie again. A smile touched his lips. Even though he hated the circumstances, he couldn’t wait to see her again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Ignoring the stares of people in the
luggage retrieval area, Katie watched the revolving carousel, eyes peeled for her serviceable green suitcase. She knew the way she was dressed made her look like a fool, but there was nothing to be done about it now. Let them stare.
She’d had only a short time to pack and make it to Heathrow and she’d put all the clothes she wanted to take with her in the suitcase. By the time she realized everything else decent she owned was either dirty or at the dry cleaner, it was time to leave. As a consequence, her triumphant return to Birmingham found her clothed in her surpassingly romantic white linen poets blouse tucked into a faded pair of cut-off denim short-shorts, a turquoise belt and a beat-up pair of cowboy boots. Yee-haw.
Spotting her suitcase half-buried under a large, black garment bag, Katie dived forward and grabbed the handle before it could make another round. She hauled it off the carousel and wondered what to do next. Walter had only said they’d pick her up at the airport; he hadn’t said where. As she looked down the concourse, her eye was caught by a man wearing a shirt with such a bright floral pattern it appeared to precede him by several feet. Curious, she raised her eyes to the man’s face, wondering who the hell would wear something like that in public, quite forgetting her own attire. With a start, she recognized Rick Parker, Shadowed Knight’s American road manager. He caught sight of her at the same time she recognized him and waved enthusiastically. Katie hoisted her suitcase and marched toward him, her cowboy boots clacking against the tile floor. Aware again of what she was wearing, she hoped she and Rick’s shirt wouldn’t make the six o’clock news.
“Hey, pretty girl.” Rick gave her a quick hug before taking her suitcase. “Good flight?” He took her arm and steered her up the concourse without waiting for an answer. “We’re parked in a red area, so we better boogie before everything’s impounded. Our hair is already generating some really negative vibes.”
“Tell me about it,” Katie responded, remembering the attitudes of Birmingham residents toward long-haired men. She trotted to keep up with Rick’s long strides and they reached the door in record time. Her eyebrows shot up in amazement at the assortment of vehicles that awaited them, including a battered looking panel truck, a VW van with George’s drum cases showing through the windows, and two innocuous Ford station wagons that might have gone undetected save they contained so much hair they looked like a Breck commercial. The first was filled with the road crew. At the head of the line, Walter stood at the front passenger door of the other wagon, tapping his foot with impatience.
“Let’s go,” he snapped at Rick as they reached the car. “Some fucking bloke just told me he was going inside to call the police.”
“The suitcase … ” Rick began, holding up Katie’s Samsonite.
“Give it to me.” Walter snatched it from Rick’s hands. “Katie, luv, brilliant to see you,” he said in a perfunctory tone before diving into the car.
Rick sped around to the driver’s side, leaving Katie on the sidewalk. The back door of the station wagon opened and a pair of long arms hauled her inside just as Rick put the car in gear. They pulled away from the curb with a squeal of tires, the other vehicles following suit. Not just the six o’clock news, then, but probably a repeat on the ten o’clock broadcast.
Katie looked at Adam from her perch on his lap. “Nice to see you, too.” Grateful as she was for his assistance, it still surprised her. After all, Adam had treated her like a pariah since the day she’d thrown him out of her flat.
Surprising her further, Adam grinned. “Since we were bringing your suitcase, I thought perhaps you’d better come along with it.”
“Thanks for thinking of me,” she told him with a hesitant grin of her own.
George, Stuart and Nicky greeted her from the rear of the car as Adam deposited her on the seat between him and Jay. Katie returned their hellos as Jay’s arm came tight around her shoulders and she felt his lips brush through her hair. She sighed and melted against him, relaxing for the first time since boarding the BritAir jet at Heathrow.
Stuart leaned over the seat back, his voice full of suppressed laughter. “Gotta tell you, Kate, I love your outfit.”
“Really? I’m amazed you can see me past the glare of Rick’s shirt.”
“Ha ha.” Rick’s voice overrode the laughter occasioned by Katie’s comment. “I’ll have you know that this shirt … Shit!” The occupants of the car were thrown forward as Rick slammed on the brakes. “Is that where we turn? Oh. No, it’s up there.”
Exclamations of alarm from the back of the car made Katie turn her head to find the front bumper of the following station wagon mere millimeters from the back window.
“When I die,” George heatedly informed Rick, “it’s going to be in a blaze of glory. Not being crushed by the road crew because you fucking don’t know how to drive!” Next to him, Nicky groaned and closed his eyes, wiping sweat from his brow.
“He was blinded by his shirt.” Stuart’s face was pale, but he managed to crack a joke.
Rick didn’t find it funny. “Eat me,” he muttered, negotiating the turn without further mishap.
Shaking in delayed reaction to the near miss, Katie turned and caught Jay’s eye. His tender smile made her heart flip-flop and she drank in her first sight of him in almost three months.
“At least I’ll die happy, blaze of glory or no,” he told her.
“Me, too.” She leaned her forehead against his. “Missed you.”
“I love you,” Jay whispered.
In the front seat, Walter fiddled with the radio and in no time Marvin Gaye was testifying that he was too busy thinkin’ about his baby to have time for nothin’ else. Before the song ended, Rick pulled the car into the parking lot of the motel. Clutching a sheaf of papers, Walter dived out almost before they came to a halt and dashed through the lobby doors. Moving much slower, Shadowed Knight tumbled out of the car with groans, stretching like cats in the sunshine.
Katie observed Jay as his long arms reached skyward, his head thrown back, a moan of pleasure escaping his lips. “You guys getting old, or what?”
Jay lowered his arms and squinted at her in the early afternoon light. “Walter allowed us to stop in Montgomery to pee. Other than that we’ve been crammed in that car since dawn.”
“Geez, you bigga-time rock and roll bands sure do lead the glamorous life, don’t you?”
“Nothing but champagne and roses, that’s us,” Jay joked. “Next time we’re hiring a plane, even if I have to pay for it myself.” He touched Rick’s shoulder to get his attention. “Make sure Katie’s suitcase gets to my room.”
“On it, Jay,” Rick assured him.
“Good.” Jay turned back to Katie and put his arm around her shoulders. “The little weasel should have us checked in by now. I’m ready to greet you properly.”
“Mm, me, too.” Just inside the motel door, she caught sight of a small group of a dozen people dressed in an assortment of outfits that made Rick’s shirt look tame. “Oh, look, honey. Your fans.” She glanced up at Jay with a grin.
“Oh, goody,” he said without enthusiasm. “I’ll wager none of them has a ticket to the show.”
“You know, if I hadn’t moved to California I’d probably be standing there with them right now,” Katie mused.
“You wouldn’t be standing there long, I can assure you of that.” Jay squeezed her shoulder as he led her toward the elevator where Walter was waiting with an assortment of room keys.
Nudging Jay’s waist to get his attention, Katie nodded toward Adam who was sauntering along in front of them, his chest thrown out and the barest movement of his head making his shimmering hair swing against his shoulder blades. “Look at him.” She lowered her voice. “The male peacock, upon spotting females of the species, fans his glorious tail feathers, an enticement to mating.”
Jay snorted in amusement. “You have no idea. It isn’t peacock feathers that get him off.”
Katie turned to him, curious. “Oh, really? And what does?”
“You don’t wa
nt to know.” His voice contained a note of finality that made her choke back any more questions.
She hadn’t been lying to Maureen when she told her the Jay she spoke to on the telephone was different from the Jay she knew at home, but seeing him up close brought it home to her with clarity. The thrill of seeing him again was starting to wear off, replaced by another kind of thrill. There was a leashed-in ferocity about Jay that set her nerves tingling, a hint of danger lurking just below the surface that stirred something deep within her. She licked her lips as they crowded into the elevator and wondered just how dangerous he could be. It came as a shock that she wanted very much to push him to the limit and find out.
The elevator came to a stop with an unnerving thump and Walter positioned himself against the door, preventing it from closing. As they exited, he handed room keys to each of them with a sharp reminder they would leave at five o’clock.
Jay’s eyes scanned the room numbers as they made their way along the hall. He glanced at the key in his hand and stopped in front of one of the doors. He tried to insert the key in the lock and frowned as it met resistance. Pulling it out, he turned it upside down and tried again. This time, the key slid home and turned with ease.
The room was furnished in Early American Ugly; brown sculptured carpet, a dresser with a plastic veneer top, a double bed with a floral bedspread, and a generic painting of sunflowers on the wall. Floral curtains, matching the bedspread, were opened over the window, the heat and air unit under it silent. The room was musty and smelled of stale cigarette smoke.
“Why the hell are we staying here?” Katie asked in astonishment.
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