Chapter 25

‘Jon I’m telling you, if he doesn’t stop we’re going to be lookin for a new keyboardist! He’s used up every last nerve I’ve got.’ Tico was the one bitching that in its self told Jon David was no longer safe from anyone!

‘Teek I know, god how I know! I’ve tried everything I can to find the damn woman, she doesn’t want finding and it’s all Lemmas fault! If he’d told her he’d see her later I don’t think she’d have bolted! He’s even ringing the hotels around here just in case she’s coming to the show, that’s how bad he’s got it for her.’

Two hours later Lucky roared into the car park, she’d pre-booked a space right next to the venue. Checking the time she realised that the fan club would be letting in soon. Did she really want to get near the stage, what if he saw her and blanked her, or worse laughed at her!

She sighed and locked her bike down, and headed for the venue.

David had just got off the phone, she wasn’t registered anywhere, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t coming, it didn’t mean she would either. God he sat with his head in his hands, what an ass he must have seemed to her that night. Just walking off and leaving her swinging, shit! If a woman had done what they had most of the day/evening/morning he’d have thought that she was either a tease or a total troll! He was a troll!

And on top of wanting her, he’d been a gigantic asshole to his brothers and the crew, he needed to start sucking up to them or he wouldn’t like what they did to him!

Lucky flashed her ticket and got it ripped and went in with the rest of the fan club. She only joined the thing so she could get in to shows early and sometimes they caught the sound check.

Her long gait ate up the steps and she entered the Golden Circle then she started to dither, front, back or side? She stood just inside the gate and people pushed passed her laughing and joking. She tried to give herself another talking too, but she just wasn’t listening. She ended up walking to the side and sitting at the back of the circle nowhere near the stage, there weren’t many people in and the ones that were there gave her a funny look, but she stayed put, she even sat down, pulling her hat further over her face, she was paranoid, hell no one was looking for her and she’d paid for the damn ticket! She really needed to get a bloody grip! She pulled her ponytail over her shoulder and played with it nervously.

Her heart hit the back of her throat, people were coming out onto the stage, the sound check looked like it was just about to start, crap, she thought they may have done that already! She was wrong, Tico came out first, starting to check his drums, techs wandering all about, Hugh and Lorenz and some others wandered out. Her palms were sweating so much she could probably fill a damn bottle! Jon and Richie came out, the crowd down front shouted and whistled, Jon flashed them a smile.

Still no David, damn he was trying to give her a heart attack!

On stage Jon was trying to control his temper, David wasn’t to be seen! He was pushing his fuckin luck. Yes they felt sorry for him, his ex was a bitch, and he’d seemed to sparkle with Lucky near him, but he needed to pull his head from his ass.

‘He’s here.’ Richie pointed out as David slunk up and around the back of the set up. Normally he and Richie would be the ones sitting on the edge of the stage talking to fans and laughing, David always came across the front and waved. Jon watched as he slumped onto his bench and turned to look at him, waiting to start, the spark had gone, and Jon felt for him, but then wanted to ream him for being tardy. He took a calming breath and prayed.

No one had spotted him coming onto the stage, except Lucky; she’d zeroed in on the movement, if people had been near her they would have heard her intake of breath, then a deep pain filled moan. Christ why the hell did she torture herself like this, she shouldn’t have come, she should have stayed away.

Yeah and there was snow in hell!

From the distance he didn’t seem right, he looked like he didn’t want to be there. There was none of his bounce, she wondered if he was ill, then mentally bitch slapped herself for caring! She needed to get away till the place filled up some more; she dragged herself upright, pulled her hat down further and headed out of the circle. As she hit the steps she flicked her ponytail down her back,

She headed up the stairs and down to the concession stands, buying a beer and a hotdog. After a bite of the dog it got thrown, her stomach was still in knots and food wouldn’t sit, but the beer stayed, so she brought another and found a wall to slid down, she wouldn’t drink any more after that, she was driving after all, but she needed something to take the edge off her emotions.

Back on stage David noticed a woman get up from the rail and his breath caught in his throat, Lucky! But the woman didn’t even glance at the stage; she pulled her hat down and then she just headed towards the stairs. God he was seeing her everywhere, then she did something, she flicked her hair over her shoulder, fuck it was the same colour as Lucky’s! It had to be her! The height, the swish of her hips, and even though he couldn’t see from there, he’d bet she’d got cowboy boots on!

As much as he wanted to charge off the stage and run to see if it was her, he knew Jon would kill him; so there he sat, playing automatically, not looking at anything else but the exit she’d left from, praying she’d come back so he could see if it was her. His heart started to beat a little faster, and a smile broke his lips for the first time since that morning, a genuine one, not the false one he’d been using.

Richie noticed Dave perk up a bit and then he smiled and Richie whipped about scanning the crowd, nada. The only reason Dave would smile was if he’d noticed someone, that someone being Lucky!

When they stopped to redo something, Richie walked to Jon and had a quiet word, Jon’s head swung to David, then swung to the crowd and scanned for a tall woman, he saw the same as Rich, nothing. What the hell had gotten into Dave, or had he totally lost it? ‘Is she here?’

‘No fuckin idea, but he’s perked up.’

‘Well be thankful for small favours, whatever’s happened he’s not moping any more.’

David continued to play and even interact with the rest a little, but his eyes still sought the exit, praying she’d walk back through, she hadn’t by the time they’d finished sound check, shit had he really seen her, or a ghost?

His shoulders slumped and they headed off stage, the first thing he did was to grab Mike and ask him to look out for the woman, he gave him a description of what she was wearing and told him it might be Lucky. He walked off muttering.

And Mike sighed praying David was right and she was here, and if she was his crew would find her; he dropped another quick prayer just in case it wasn’t her, David would loose it even more.