Our fun, happy bunch is predictably doing their end of night shots. They invite Jack and Hunter to join their holy ritual. Two lonely shots sit on the tray waiting for my ass to arrive to the bar. “I’m not doing a shot.”
Lori rolls her eyes. “God forbid. This one is mine.” She picks up the tequila and the last shot that is much lighter in color than all the others. “This one is yours. It’s ginger ale.” Matt, Lori, and Joe all chuckle at my expense. They tease me mercilessly every single night. Why should tonight be any different?
Actually the difference is, that tonight I’m going to kill her.
Evan comes over and throws his arm around my shoulder. “Leave Lei alone.”
Lori smiles sweetly at Evan. “Ev, are you going to tour with Devil’s Lair, too or is Leila hiring a NEW bodyguard?”
“That’s not a bad idea, Banzini. Things will be boring around here without Leila to bust on.”
Ignoring Lori and Evan, I turn my attention to Jack and Hunter rolling my eyes. “See what I have to put up with? It was really nice of you guys to come see our show.” Turning back to my friends, I smirk and wave my middle finger at their laughing faces. “I’ll miss you all so much.”
“Wait, if you don’t like ginger ale, I have apple juice.” Lori antagonizes me.
“Bite me, Banzini.”
“With pleasure, Marino. Bend over.”
“Ok…I’m outta here.”
Evan kisses my cheek as I turn from my ball busting, hysterically laughing friends, Jack and Hunter included.
“Leila, I want to give you our address.” Jack calls out as he rushes to catch up to me.
“Oh, ok.”
I plug the address he recites into my phone. We stand facing each other, and I’m pulled into the magnetic field that surrounds him.
An awkward silence stretches between us.
“You ok?”
“Yeah, I’m just exhausted.” I lie from necessity. I’m not in the mood for small talk at the moment. Jack watches me closely for a few seconds.
“Um, ok, see you at the party, Leila?”
“Yes, we’ll be there. Bye, Jack.”
Jack steps closer so we are face to face. My heart skips a beat, then another. “I’m glad we came tonight. Your band is really good. I knew you were talented, but seeing you performing with them, I kinda feel like we’ve stolen you.” It looks like he wants to say something else, but chooses not to.
His presence consumes me.
His words confound me.
I whisper a very quiet thank you. I’m clearly at a loss for words.
“Ok, see you Sunday.” Jack looks directly into my eyes, and I fall under the spell of his gaze. He then grips my shoulder as he walks away, leaving me panting and wondering if he is going to wait for Lori to finish her shift.
Damn it!
What do I wear to this stupid thing? I stare at my closet hoping that something presents itself to me. It’s getting late, and I’m almost out of time. I’ve dilly-dallied, had three glasses of wine, which was a big mistake in hindsight as I’m now running around trying to get ready while slightly tipsy – another mistake.
Evan and Lori are due here any minute. Logan, Alisa, Joseph and Matt are meeting us there. I was surprised that Matt decided to come. My gut instinct was to un-invite him. Evan assured me that Matt would be on his best behavior. My response to Evan was that we’d see.
The door buzzes scaring the crap out of me.
“I need five minutes.” I call into the intercom, now panicked. Jeans, shirt, mascara, lipstick, a squirt of perfume between my breasts (I have no idea why, no one will be near them tonight) and I’m done in seven minutes. Not bad.
I take a deep breath and leave my apartment feeling even more buzzed from the adrenaline rush of getting ready in record time.
On my way down three flights, I consider my original plan of setting Lori up with Hunter.
Maybe it’s not too late?
Maybe Hunter will capture her attention tonight?
Maybe Lori will become deathly allergic to Jack?
Evan and Lori are sitting in Evan’s car waiting for me. The minute I slide into the back seat, Lori starts yapping.
“What a week this has been. Lei, you are the best. First you hand me a dream job on a silver platter. Next you introduce me to the best-looking man I have ever seen. Then he invites us to a party at his place. Life is so good.” She reaches back to squeeze my knee.
I feel bad for being angry with her. It’s not her fault she is so irresistible to men.
“Evan can you stop at a liquor store? I want to pick up something to bring with us.”
“Sure, Lei.”
I settle into the back seat. The soothing motion of the car makes me feel very sleepy all of a sudden.
Evan watches me through the rear view mirror and asks, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’m just a little buzzed.”
“Buzzed? You? Why are you buzzed?” Lori turns in her seat watching me skeptically.
“Don’t look at me like that. I am a little nervous about tonight. I had a glass of wine that led to three.”
Evan and Lori exchange a look, which I decide to ignore. They aren’t my parents. I close my eyes and drift while picturing Jack’s face.
It takes longer than it should to get to Brooklyn, between my brief catnap, stopping for liquor and the tons of traffic we hit cutting through Manhattan. We are over an hour late by the time we arrive at Jack and Hunter’s building and my buzz is gone. From the sounds coming from the fourth floor, the party is definitely in full swing. Evan carries the case of beer he and Lori split, and I have the bottle of Tequila that I decided on.
Scott answers the door looking confused until he spots me behind Evan and Lori. “Hey Leila, so glad you could come.”
“Scott, this is Evan and Lori. Guys, this is Scott. He’s guitarist for Devil’s Lair.”
Hunter spots us standing at the door. “Hey, you made it” He says walking over. “Your friends got here a little while ago. We were wondering where you were.” He is holding hands with a brunette beauty that is partially hiding behind him. Hunter turns to her and says, “This is Amanda.”
She smiles shyly and waves.
Well any small hope I had left of Lori and Hunter hitting it off just took a free-fall off the roof without a parachute. That explains a lot.
“I’m Leila. This is Evan and Lori.” I turn back to Hunter and shrug. “Sorry, we hit some traffic.”
I’m instantly distracted as I spot Jack walk into the room. He notices our arrival, and walks straight over to us looking like a runway model. My mouth goes dry, and Lori groans besides me and licks her lips like she is about to have him for lunch.
“Leila, you made it in one piece.” he teases.
“Evan drove.” I respond defensively. “I was merely a passenger.” Evan gives me a look.
“So, it’s all your fault Evan.” Jack elaborates while fist punching Evan.
“Apparently so.” Evan answers sourly.
Jack turns to hug Lori and then me. Man…he smells so good. He feels even better.
As Jack and Evan discuss the route we took to get here, Lori leans into me. “He smells so damn good.”
I smile weakly and nod, wondering why she hasn’t broken out into hives yet.
God forgive me.
Evan hands the beer to Hunter and I give my bottle of tequila to Jack. “Awesome. We are almost out. Thanks, Leila. Come get something to drink.”
Jack leads us through the small apartment toward the kitchen. Besides my band, the girls and Devil’s Lair, Patti is here. She waves when she sees me. I have to make it a point to thank her. She is the reason I am now a member of Devil’s Lair. Also mulling around are Scary Sally, Trey, a selection of pretty girls and a few other guys I don’t know. In total there are a few dozen people cramped into this tiny apartment.
The short counter in the kitchen is littered with liquor bottles of all sorts.
Jack helps us select our drink of choice and grabs a beer for himself. Not seeing any white wine, I decide on a rum and diet coke. Jack makes a very strong drink. I casually grab an opened can and add more diet coke to my glass.
Shrugging, I say, “I’m a light weight. I usually drink cheap white wine.”
“It has to be cheap?”
“Yes, otherwise it’s awful.”
He laughs and rubs my back. Lori catches the whole exchange and is unable to hide a frown. I quickly become the least of her problems. As we stand in the small kitchen, three other girls appear from nowhere surrounding Jack like sharks circling a seal. Lori slinks over and stands next to Jack, clearly staking her claim. Damn, she’s already territorial. I saunter out of the kitchen leaving the four beauties to duke it out as best they can.
Hunter is in a corner huddled close and whispering with Amanda. They make a nice couple. Hunter with his fair spiky hair and adorable smile and Amanda with her exotic long curly hair and warm brown eyes. In hindsight, he isn’t a good match for Lori. He is too sweet. Trey is more her style.
Wait… I have an idea.
Wondering if I’m too late with my brand new plan, I look over at Lori who is glued to Jack’s side. But in all fairness the three other girls have gotten closer to him as well. One of them is giving Lori a death stare every time Lori opens her mouth. Jack and Lori have been openly flirting, but surprisingly Jack isn’t making any moves. Although Lori is very touchy, feely, Jack is not. He’s keeping his distance.
This gives me a glimmer of hope.
I search for Trey and spot him across the room watching Lori. He doesn’t take his eyes off her. Why didn’t I think of this sooner? He is her typical bad boy rocker type, and I know that she will fall head over heels for him if she gives him just five minutes of her attention. I haven’t spoken more than two words to Trey since I met him, but I can’t let that stop me from putting my plan in motion.
I nonchalantly walk over to where he is standing. He turns toward me to acknowledge my presence.
“Having fun Leila?”
“Yeah, I am.” I respond lamely. I don’t have a thing to say to this man. Standing side by side in complete silence, five seconds in I am starting to feel uncomfortable. Thankfully, I notice Trey’s eyes glued to Lori once again. I seize the opportunity. “Have you met my friend Lori?”
“No I haven’t. Introduce us.” His request is more of a command.
“Sure, wait here.” I walk over to where Jack, Lori, and the trio are all downing shots. Lori always becomes the life of the party without even trying. Nothing intimidates this girl, absolutely nothing. She isn’t fazed in the least that the other three are all vying for Jack’s attention. She could give a crap.
She looks hot in a simple short red tank dress, her signature heels, and her auburn hair that hangs loosely to the middle of her back. While laughing and holding onto Jack’s shoulder, she downs another shot. It’s clear that she is beyond buzzed. I need to change her course of action immediately.
I lean over and whisper in her ear. “I want you to meet someone.”
“Oh Lei, take a shot. You need one!” Jack looks amused and holds out the shot glass he just had against his own lips a moment ago. Damn that’s hot.
Smirking, he says, “I’m afraid we don’t have ginger ale.”
“Funny.” I take it from his fingers, down the shot, and hand him back the glass in one fast motion.
Wow, that burns. I detest tequila. How can they down these things so effortlessly?
Jack laughs at the face I am making. Once the burning stops, I feel a slow, warmth spread in the pit of my stomach that feels nice.
“Want another one?” He asks while staring into my eyes. What I want is to grab his face and shove my tongue down his throat. I really need to have sex before I start working with him or I will be charged with assault.
“No, I’m good. I just need to borrow Lori for a minute. We’ll be right back.”
I grab Lori’s arm and pull her across the room. She protests until I stop her smack in front of Trey. Her eyes lose focus for a second and then she gives him a slow smile.
“Lori, this is Trey Taylor. He is bass guitarist for Devil’s Lair. Trey, this is Lori Banzini, my good friend.” They shake hands, and it’s happening. They check each other out, and Trey actually smiles.
Success!
I excuse myself after a few minutes of being completely ignored. Looking around the apartment, I try to decide who would be the lesser of all evils. Alisa, Logan, Hunter, Amanda, Scott and Patti are on the couch chatting like old friends. I guess they naturally migrated together since they are the only couples at the party.
Joseph, Matt, Scary Sally and a few guys are at the table playing some drinking game. Joseph looks relaxed and like he is having fun. Even Matt is smiling and having fun.
Evan has a cute blonde laughing at his every word. He feels my eyes watching him and turns toward me and smiles.
Missing in action are Jack and the blond who was shooting daggers at Lori. I feel a touch out of sorts and amble over to the mock bar to get another drink. Everyone else is buzzed and I am not.
Mixing a rum and diet coke, I feel someone’s breath on my ear.
“Are you having fun?”
I jolt around in an extremely clumsy way and spill half my drink. Jack chuckles and says, “Did I scare you?”
“Yes.” I respond truthfully. He did scare me. He does scare me.
He grabs a roll of paper towels and bends to clean up the spill.
“I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be silly. It’s no big deal.” He straightens and grabs a half full bottle of Tequila. “Can I show you something?”
Caught in his net, I nod mechanically. There isn’t a doubt in my mind that I would follow him to hell. Jack leads me into the hallway and then up a short flight of stairs. He turns to me just as he’s about to open a door and I first notice his eyes are slightly unfocused.
Crap. Is he drunk?
This could be a huge mistake. Drunken Jack and Horny Leila…oh fuck.
He opens the door to a beautiful rooftop hangout. I gasp from the view. It’s simply breathtaking. Jack smiles at my reaction. There are mini Christmas lights strung along the perimeter. There are a few plastic patio tables with chairs. There is a tacky pleather couch against the wall under an overhang.
“Wow, Jack this is incredible. If I lived here I would never leave.”
“I spend a lot of time up here. I love to come up and play my guitar. I become very inspired. A lot of my songs were written up here.”
“Why is the party not here?”
“Ssh… this is my secret. I’m not sure we are even allowed up here. No one in the building knows about it or uses it, so I’ve declared it mine.” He smiles devilishly and motions toward the couch. “Want to sit a while?”
He walks me over to the couch and sits close. I can feel every nerve in my body pulsing from his proximity. We quietly enjoy the cool night air and the spectacular view.
“I really loved your show. Your band is very talented.”
“Thanks. It’s nice to hear from someone who doesn’t live in Hoboken. We tend to forget that there’s a whole other world out there.”
“I get that. The same thing happened to us. Playing the same bars over and over, seeing the same faces. You get very comfortable and complacent.”
“Well, things worked out for you guys.”
“Us guys.” He corrects.
“You guys. I had nothing to do with your success.”
“You will. Once we tour and our fans hear your voice, you will be linked to our success.”
I quietly contemplate his words. Am I ready for that?
“So what’s the deal with Matt?” His question breaks my reverie.
“Matt?”
“Sore subject?”
Matt is who Jack wants to talk about? What the hell?
Laying my head back against the couch I look up at the night sky.
/>
“What’s the deal with Matt? Hmmm…that’s a loaded question.”
“He seems angry at the world.” Jack’s met him all of five minutes, and he’s pegged him perfectly.
“You can say that, sometimes. There are also times when he can be Mr. Wonderful. Not sure what happened there. He is opposite his brother Logan.”
“Now that I’ve met them, it’s hard to believe they are even related.”
“Yep, it is.” I avoid Jack’s gaze, I continue to stare up at the beautiful star filled sky. I can’t help but wonder why Jack has fixated on Matt.
“You two have chemistry.” His blunt statement doesn’t squelch my curiosity. I don’t see why he would care if we did have chemistry, which we most definitely do not.
“No we don’t.”
“From where I sat it sure looked that way.” Jack takes a quick swig of the tequila, and leans back against the back of the couch, now avoiding my gaze.
If he only knew that the reason I acted that way was because I was fantasizing about him the entire time. Jack waits patiently for me to continue. I want him to know that I am not attracted to Matt and don’t want to be linked to him ever again so I decide to fess up.
“Well he and I dated, twice. Once during high school for less than a year. The second time a few years later for even less than that.”
“So you do have chemistry.”
“No, we have history.”
Taking another drink of tequila he then asks, “Why did you guys break up twice?”
“Damn, you’re nosey.”
Shrugging, he continues to watch me brazenly, waiting for my response.
Fine, he wants to know details? I’ll give him details. I shift sideways on the couch to face him and he does the same, our knees practically touching. “The first time was in high school. I guess I out grew him. He was stuck. The second was a few years later. I thought he matured and gave it another shot. Then he cheated. No strike three after that, I’m afraid. Cheating is a hard limit for me.”
What to Read After FSOG: The Gemstone Collection (WTRAFSOG Book 7) Page 97