by Unknown
Tiger was just signed with DS Records and this was their first big tour. The lead singer is sexy. His long black hair frames his face, his eyes are shut as he croons about his broken heart. He is tall and lanky but as he hugs the mic, his shirt slips up giving a peak of the deep V cut into his lower stomach. As my eyes drift back to his face, I am caught in his piercing grey gaze. Embarrassment rushes to my cheeks and he shoots me a big smile. I take a chance to glance around at the rest of the band. I haven’t met them yet but they sound really good. The drummer flies around on the biggest kit I have ever seen. The bass player seems to be embracing the shadows despite no one being in the audience yet. The guitar player who is closest to me surprises me by being female, her fingers effortlessly flying across the strings of her Gibson.
We listen to the rest of Tiger’s set and clap when they finish. The lead singer beelines towards us flashing that panty dropping smile of his, what is it about lead singers?
“Hi, I’m Jake.” He grins and flips his bangs out of his eyes. Which causes me to laugh. I don’t mean to laugh at his attempt at being sexy but his excitement is palpable and it’s kind of adorable. I reach out to shake his hand, grabbing my hand he pulls me out from under Ryker’s arm. Apparently laughing in his face or being hung on by another guy hasn’t detoured him.
“What’s your name, beautiful?” He says softly, his lips kissing my hand.
“Nell.”
“Oh shit,” he drops my hand and steps back causing Ryker to snort with laughter. “Sorry Nell, I didn’t know the boss’s daughter was so hot. Shit, I didn’t know you were Nell, Nell the boss’ daughter.”
“It’s okay Jake,” I am chuckling. “How is everything going with you guys so far? Any issues that need to be addressed?” I am not their tour manager but its’ my job to make sure all the equipment is working correctly since they do share mics and amps.
“Nope, it’s all working great. Best set up we have ever had.” He turns to the other members of the band, who have now gathered behind him. “Hey guys this is Nell, she is the tour manager for Toven, and Crane’s daughter.” I see surprise cross their faces but we all say hello and shake hands.
“Well you guys sound really great and it was nice meeting all of you but I am starving and heading back to the bus. See you guys tonight.” I walk down the stage stairs, heading back out through the hallway. As I reach the doors, I brace myself for what I might be walking out too.
Chapter 16
Nell
As my eyes adjust to the blinding sunshine, I can see the Jaden’s bike is no longer parked next to the bus. I release the breath I was holding and walk over to the bus. Jogging up the steps, I stop dead at the top upon seeing the white blonde head siting at the kitchenette table.
My first thought is maybe she didn’t hear me but her head swivels around, I almost expect it to keep going Exorcist style. A big fake smile is plastered on her face.
“Hi, you must be Nell. Jaden mentioned you are there new tour manager” she says as she stands up and bounces towards me.
“Uh, yeah. It’s nice to meet you.” I equal her fake pleasantries, before asking. “Is Jaden still around?”
Emily’s eyes turn cold despite her big smile, “He left to go to pick up his family for tonight’s show.”
“Oh, why didn’t you go? I heard you two were dating?” The smile falls and she glares at me, I kind of want to laugh but keep it in, barely.
”I will meet them later at the show. Jaden wanted to let me have some time to get ready since I just flew in from New York.”
“Well, that was sweet of him. You are so lucky, I never would have guessed he was so considerate.”
“Jaden is the best and loves me so much.” She smiles almost sweetly.
“Wow, I didn’t know that you two were so serious.” I am taken back by what she just said. They apparently have only spent a weekend together but she is saying that he loves her? Then why would he fuck me less than a couple hours ago?
“We both fell so quickly for each other. He is just amazing and I feel so lucky.” I can sense something isn’t right especially from what Ryker said earlier.
“That is wonderful. Are you going to stay on the tour with us for a little while?” I silently plead she will say no.
“Sadly, I am just going to be here for the evening as I have studio time scheduled now that my tour is over. Once the album and Toven’s tour is finished, we are planning to take a few weeks together on a beach somewhere.” She is bouncing with excitement again, a big goofy grin on her face.
I start to feel really guilty about what happened between Jaden and me. Emily didn’t seem so bad, a little emotionally bio-polar but nice.
“That sounds like it would be really fun. A warm beach sounds amazing. Maybe I will have to find a hot man and a beach to visit once the tour is over.” I say with a laugh but Emily doesn’t join in. Her face has lost its happy glow and her eyes have turned cold again.
“You think Jaden is hot?”
Shit, I think, there is no right answer to this question.
“I would say that half of the world’s woman think that Jaden James is hot.” I laugh and to my relief so does Emily. I am Gavin Crane’s daughter, I know how to think on my feet. Emily’s laugh cuts off and she steps towards me into my personal bubble. The top of her head stops at my shoulder but as she looks up at me with a glare, I cannot help but feel threatened.
“Listen to me and listen good, Jaden told me he fucked you. We shared a nice laugh about how inadequate you were,” I feel like this little cunt kicked me in the stomach. He told her and said I was inadequate? “We do not keep secrets from each other. He is a man with needs and I understand he needs to get off but no one can compete with me. I know who you are and I have no doubt that your Daddy will toss you out on your ass, if I even suspect you to look at Jaden too long. Are we clear?” She doesn’t wait for me to answer, but stalks off the bus, leaving me flattened in her wake.
******************************
Emily is gone but I stand there frozen. I thought we had an amazing time. He said it was incredible. Ugh, I knew better then to sleep with him and now I will be stuck with him and possibly Emily too. It kills me to think that they were laughing about me. Laughing at my inexperience but of course they would. He has had thousands of woman and knows what is good. I know I became very vocal, but he seemed to like it at the time.
Shaking my head to clear it, I go back to my nook and grab my violin case. It’s been several days since I had been able to play and I need the relief, the escape it would bring. With music, I can close my eyes and just be.
Chapter 17
Jaden
As I ride in the back of the limo on the way to my parent’s house, I try to figure out what to do. Emily says she is pregnant with my kid. There is no way that is possible. I used a condom every time we were together, and after her first bout of crazy, where she threw a champagne glass at my head, I contemplated using two, just to be safe. She was a freak in bed, going at my cock like it hungry bear just waking up from months of hibernation. The sex was wild and fun but I didn’t want anything more with her. In fact I would have been thrilled to never see her again.
I can’t be a father. I don’t want a child, and I definitely do not want to be forever connected to Emily Snow.
And shit what about Nell. She is fucking amazing. I have had sex with lots of girls but never on my bike in the middle of the woods. My cock starts to twitch as I remember how dirty her mouth was and how I would like to dirty up that sweet mouth again. But fuck, how I can be fantasizing about Nell’s dirty mouth, when Emily just told me she was having my baby.
Pulling up to my parents’ house, I get out, jogging up the front steps, and into the house.
“Hello? Mom? Dad?” I call out slamming the door. “Hey we gotta go! Where is everyone?” Feet thunder down the stairs, my nephew, Jax, crashes down them, jumping the last three and grabbing me in a huge hug. He’s grown so much in the last year that he’s now eye to
eye with me. He’s wiry still and now that he’s lifting for football, he’s starting to fill out some more but when he opens his mouth I am shocked.
“Jay! When can I come down and hang with you guys?” His voice had dropped a few octaves since I saw him last.
“Wow, Dude, no hi? No, how are you Jay? No, I’ve missed you so much?” I chuckle as I throw my arm around his neck to pull him into a headlock. He starts to jump around fighting to get out of the hold. I am able to hold on but just barely. The kids starting to get strong and going to be kicking my ass pretty soon.
“Okay, Hi, how are you, I missed you, now let the hell go, you’re messing up my hair!” laughing I let him go, pushing him behind me, so I can go into the kitchen first. My Dad sitting at the large island with my brother, Rook and his wife, Keesha.
"Hey Dad," I say as he stands and gives me a big huge.
"Jay! Great to have you home!" He says pulling back but keeping his hands on my shoulders.
"We couldn't wait to come home. I'm thinking of buying a house up here after this tour is over."
"Good, it's time my boy comes home." Pulling me in for another tight hug. "Your Mom is going to be so damn thrilled. Just don't let her fucking move you in next door." He laughs and slaps my shoulder before sitting back down.
"Not going to happen. But let's not tell her yet. I want to surprise her." I say and head for Keesha, wrapping her up tightly in my arms, smelling her hair, being totally creepy, "Keesha baby, when are you going to dump this loser and run away with me?" Before she can answer, I'm grabbed by the scruff on my neck, and yanked backwards slammed against the refrigerator by a growling Rook.
"Hey Bro, didn't see you there." I say laughing.
"5 seconds and I already want to kill you. Welcome home little brother. Don't fucking touch my woman or I'll break your fingers." He growls at me before we give each other a hug.
Keesha comes over and pats my shoulder. "We've missed you, Jay, but you’re going to cause Rook to have a heart attack one day."
"Fuck woman, I'm not that old." he grumbles.
"Always be way older than us, cradle robber." Rook is 15 years older than me, 10 older than Keesha, and I never let him forget it. My parents had him shortly after they got married and tried for several years after to get pregnant again but with no luck. Doctors said that it just wasn't possible for them to have anymore. They were deviated but at least they had Rook, so they went about life. Then surprise 15 years later, mom kept getting sick and finally went to the doctor. And boom, they were pregnant again.
"Fuck you, asshole, at least I have a hot wife." He grunts tugging Keesha to his side.
"Yeah, ya do." I say checking her out and getting punched in the gut for my efforts.
"Rook! Don't hit your brother!" Comes Mom’s voice as she rounds the corner. She grabs my face and just looks at me. "I've missed you, kid."
"Missed you, Mom." I say, folding her up in a tight hug.
Chapter 18
Nell
Gemma’s plan lands and I am there anxiously waiting. I need my best friend after the crap day I’ve had. I have to wait at the TSA security section which is the closest they let you get despite what movies show. When I see her tiny head bobble along, I make a dash for it. Racing past the ominous “Do Not Cross” yellow tape and full on tackling my bestie up in a giant hug, that nearly takes us both down.
Gemma knows I am not a hugger but doesn’t ask me any questions, just lets me hang onto her until I am ready to let go.
“Do we have time for food?” she asks and I nod.
We head out to the town car and tell to find us a great burger place. 15 minutes later we pull up in front of a tiny burger bar in the Hollywood District. We go inside and order our fat and grease on a bun while I spill out everything that happened since I saw her.
“Fuck, Nell, you really know how to step in it.” She pause as I grown out my agreement. ”On a motorbike, really?”
“Damn it, Gemma, he has a girlfriend!”
“I know, I know bu…”
“No buts!”
“All right, no buts. However, you could still give me details.” She grins while I shake my head at her.
“Oh look we don’t have time. Let go.”
*********************************
I have never been to a Toven’s show before, and despite everything that happened earlier, I am looking forward to watching from the wings. I stand waiting in the dark with the rest of the audience. The stage is shaped like a T with a long extension that goes out into the crowd. There are three enormous screens hanging above, which will be hooked up to several cameras throughout the Rose Garden. Gemma will have a handheld and be down in-between the stage and the cattle guards, shooting footage that will appear on the main screen.
Ryker is on stage first at his keyboard, the spot light illuminates him, he plays a haunting melody, his guitar slung on his back. The crowd starts to clap slowly along with the beat when Finn’s drums kick in, slow at first then steadily increasing. Ryker steps back from the keyboard, lifting his guitar, replacing the haunting rhythm by making the strings screech out his bidding.
As Jaden head can be seen rising up from below at the end of the T, the crazed crowd goes even more insane. Grabbing the mic with both hands, from the stand in front of him, he lets out a guttural growl, straining his body back, as if the sound is forcing its way out of him. As the lyrics pour out of Jaden, I can’t pull my eyes away from him. He puts all of himself into the music, closing his eyes, griping the mic close, and using his whole body to power through the notes and emotion. He switches between the growls and cries making the song sound beautifully agonizing.
At the chorus, Ryker and Ashton jump in lending their own voices, as Jaden releases another feral cry. The intonation resembling the gritty howls of a demon as it tries to escape his confinement. Rykers guitar drops out in the next verse when he grabs the mic and starts spitting lyrics with his agile tongue. Jumping on a speaker up front, Jaden roars out the chorus once more.
The crowd hangs on every note released into the huge arena. Mosh pits litter the floor area, with kids bashing and thrashing around and against each other. As the sea of people start to move together, it becomes intrinsic. The sea rolls and breaks as thousands become one. The fans sing along with every word, pushing and reaching to get closer to these God’s they worship. As they sing their hearts out along with Jaden, goose bumps explode through my body at the beautiful moment of unity of all these people brought together by these four incredible people.
When Ryker takes over the song again, Jaden walks over to Finns drum kit, grabbing a water bottle, taking a huge swig. His eyes meet mine, causing my insides to twist and squirm as the electricity in the air escalates. He throws a grin at me and turns the water bottle over his head. The water runs its way down his face, off his chin making his shirt wet and cling to his muscular chest. He shoots me one more grin, knowing my thoughts, before diving back into the song.
As Jaden let’s go of another deafening scream, the lights hitting his wet skin glistening along his straining neck muscles. My tongue dries up in protest, for not being allowed to lick the water off. When he whips his wet shirt off, using it to wipe his face off, I draw in a heated gasp and my jaw drops open. That is until, I am hit in the face with something dark and wet. The shirt quickly drops into my waiting hands. Jaden lets out a laugh. I tuck the shirt into my back pocket, fuck yeah I am keeping it.
As they move into an older songs, bodies are suddenly being pitched above the crowds’ heads. Lifted and moved as the brave surf along the trusting hands of their peers. They ride along until dropped into the burley arms of the security guards arms that stand between the cattle guards and the stage. I see Gemma scurrying to avoid being trampled by falling bodies. Ryker sweeps out of nowhere, reaching out a hand to help pull her up on stage, and away from danger. He quickly gets back to playing like nothing happened. Gemma films around on the stage making sure to get plenty of good shots of t
he rolling crowds.
Mid-way through the show Jaden, holds his hands up calling attention to the crowd, “Okay Portland, I want to try something, and as this is our home and the radest bunch of fucking fans, I think this is a good place to start.” Jaden calls out to the crowd. “Okay, okay, I need everyone to calm down for this to work.” He pauses, giving them a minute to settle. “Does anyone in here know the drumming for our song, A Fistful of Anger?” 10-15 hands raise and Jaden points to a small blonde girl, standing back a few rows from the front. A security guard leans out and the people around her help her out of pit and on to the stage. She is a tiny thing with an enormous grin on her face. Finn waves her back behind his set and they start chatting away.
“Okay, now we need someone who knows the guitar and bass parts.” Ryker says, causing more hands to raise. Jaden picks a couple guys at random and moves on to fill his space in the band while they make their way up to the stage.
“Okay Portland, we saved the best for last, who wants to come up here a sing with me?” The whole crowd erupted once more and Jaden pointed out a young lanky tall guy.