A Road to Let Go (Fallen Tuesday #4) (20 page)

“
Let
’
s just get through this show,
”
Jake said.
“
We have to see how they do this
live. They need to work the audience.
”

“
Yeah,
”
Luke said.
“
I
’
m
sure it
’
ll help once we get
up there.
”

“
Couldn
’
t resist, huh Jake?
”
Mack asked.

“
I
can
’
t,
”
Jake said.
“
After what happened with that
last show
…
it
’
s eating at me, man.
”

“
No
walking away tonight?
”
Mack
asked.

“
No,
”
Jake said.
“
I
’
m
still sorry about that.
”

“
Let
it roll off your shoulders, bro,
”
Mack said.

Luke noticed that Jake's focus was
elsewhere.

“
Jake
…”

“
Are
we good?
”
Jake asked.
“
I have something I need to take
care of.
”

Before Luke could say anything,
Jake walked away.

Luke and the rest of the band
watched as he approached a woman at the bar.

“
What
is this?
”
Mack asked.

“
I
have no idea,
”
Luke said.
“
What happened with Chloe?
”

All eyes went to Trent.

“
Don
’
t look at me,
”
Trent said.
“
I have no idea what that guy is
up to.
”

“
I
hope he
’
s not getting into
more trouble with women,
”
Mack said.

“
It
’
s Jake,
”
Luke said.
“
He
can
’
t help himself.
”

“
Maybe
he
’
ll find the right one
soon,
”
Trent said.

Luke laughed. The rest of the band
started to talk but Luke kept his eyes on Jake.

Please
…
Jake
…
please
…
nothing stupid, man
…

(18)

Jake sat next to Mel and gently
bumped into her.

“
Oh,
sorry,
”
he said.

She turned her head and said,
“
That
’
s
…”
and her mouth fell open.
“
What
are you doing here?
”

“
Catching
a show,
”
Jake said.
“
What about you?
”

“
I
’
m out with Alex,
”
Mel said.

Alex? Who the hell was
…

“
I
’
m Alex,
”
the woman next to Mel said and raised her glass.
“
Big fan, by the way. I play
guitar, too. I play small clubs. I
’
m
not popular though. I basically suck.
”

Jake laughed.
“
Wow. You don
’
t hold back, do you?
”

“
Nope,
”
Alex said.

She stood with her glass in hand.
She offered her hand to Jake and he shook it. She then looked at Mel.

“
I
’
ll catch you later.
”

“
No,
”
Mel said.

“
No,
”
Jake said.
“
Don
’
t let me ruin the night.
”

“
Actually,
”
Alex said,
“
you saved the night, rockstar. I
’
ve got a guy over there looking
at me. And Mel
…
well, her
face is as red now as it was before when
someone
was texting her.
”

Mel
’
s
jaw dropped again and Alex sipped her drink as she walked away.

Jake faced Mel and was once again
captured by her beauty. She was pretty. So pretty without even trying. She had
her hair pulled back again and looked like she barely had any makeup on.

“
Who
were you texting?
”
Jake
asked with a grin.

A bartender offered Jake a beer, on
the house. He accepted it and ordered Mel another drink.

“
I
’
m sorry about Alex,
”
Mel said.
“
She
’
s kind of a friend. Really the only friend I have
here. She
’
s an interesting
woman.
”

“
I
see that,
”
Jake said.
“
But I
’
m not worried about her. I can
’
t believe you
’
re here.
”

“
I
could say the same about you,
”
Mel said.

“
Well,
the band playing is a band we
’
re
probably going to take on tour with us.
”

“
Seriously?
”

Jake nodded.
“
Gone By Autumn. Ever hear of them?
”

“
Probably,
”
Mel said.
“
I
’
m
sure I
’
ll recognize a song
or two. If you want an honest opinion, ask Alex. She follows bands like crazy.
”

“
Nah,
I
’
d rather sit here with
you,
”
Jake said.

He inched closer to Mel. He waited
for her to make her move.

She hesitated slightly before
turning in her seat. They were facing each other now.

“
So
you just listen to the band?
”
Mel asked.

“
We
met them backstage,
”
Jake
said.
“
Watched them play a
song. Now we
’
ll watch how
they work the audience and then have a band meeting.
”

“
Where
’
s the band?
”

Jake nodded and Mel looked. Her
eyes widened.
“
Wow. Fallen
Tuesday.
”

“
Yup.
”
Jake paused and then moved his
right hand across the bar until he touched Mel
’
s
hand.
“
I
’
m glad we
’
re here right now, Mel. The morning had been so
…
something
…
I don
’
t want you think that
’
s
the kind of guy I am.
”

Mel looked at Jake.
“
Why does my opinion of you matter?
”

“
It
just does,
”
Jake said.
“
I have something I
’
d like to talk to you about.
Maybe after the concert?
”

“
My
ride
…”

“
I
have a limo,
”
Jake said.

“
Alex
has a car. Sometimes it doesn
’
t
start.
”

Jake smiled.
“
I think I win.
”

“
Yeah,
me too
…”

Mel lingered close. She bit on her
lip and caused Jake to make a fist with his other hand. He moved his fingers
along Mel
’
s hand. It felt
like the rest of the club faded away.

Jake wanted to kiss her and he
wanted to take her somewhere else.

“
Am
I crashing your night?
”
Jake asked.
“
If you came
here to hang out with your friend
…”

“
Nope,
”
Mel said.
“
I would have sat here all night
and thought about you anyway.
”

Jake noticed Mel
’
s drink was empty. That was at
least two drinks. Maybe more. He could tell Mel was relaxing a little more
already.

Mel smiled at him and said,
“
What makes this band so good?
For your tour?
”

“
They
have a connection,
”
Jake
said.
“
It
’
s not always about good music. A
good connection makes good music. We joke with each other in the band and call
each other brothers. That
’
s
kind of how we live. We don
’
t
always agree. We don
’
t
always like each other. But at the end of the day
…
well, we kind of love each other.
”

“
How
cute.
”

“
I
’
m serious. We love each other
and we love our fans.
”

“
Does
that mean you love me?
”
Mel
teased.

Jake smirked.
“
Are you a fan?
”

“
Of
course.
”

“
Then,
yes, I
…
I love you.
”

Mel laughed and Jake swallowed
hard. He liked flirting with Mel. He never liked flirting before. It was
usually more or less a
get down to business
kind of thing with him.

Mel put a hand to Jake
’
s shoulder and then touched his
neck.
“
I need another
drink, rockstar.
”

“
You
got it. Just don
’
t drink
too much. You don
’
t want to
do anything regrettable.
”

“
Like
wake up in bed with a stranger?
”
Mel asked.

Jake sighed.
“
Yeah, exactly.
”

Mel moved closer to Jake.
“
Well, it's a good thing you
’
re not a stranger.
”

Jake felt his entire body tense up.
His blood pumped hard and fast. He couldn
’
t
help himself; he put his hand to Mel
’
s
waist.

“
It's
a very good,
”
he said.

Mel
’
s
cheek touched his. He could feel her breathing near his ear.

“
I
’
m not drunk right now,
”
Mel said.
“
Getting there though, I think.
”

“
Just
…
don
’
t
…”

Mel moved and soon the tip of her
nose was touching Jake
’
s.
Jake couldn
’
t believe how
quickly obsessed he felt with Mel. Right down to the tip of her nose. It was a
little pointy and it was small and soft.

Shit.

Jake turned his head a little and
offered Mel a quick kiss. Her lips tasted amazing, fruity from whatever drink
she was having. Mel
’
s hand
slipped around to the back of his neck and she held him there. Jake hated
himself for trying to resist her kisses. But somewhere in his mind he thought
of Chloe again.

He wasn
’
t sure what his place should be in this. Tell Mel
about Chloe. Or just see where things were going with Mel. It wasn
’
t like he and Mel were
…

Mel
’
s
lips parted and Jake matched her. The tips of their tongues touched as they
started to softly make out right there at the bar. Jake put a hand to Mel
’
s face and then pulled back. He
licked his lips and smiled at her.

“
You
keep pulling away,
”
Mel
whispered.
“
What is it? Are
you with someone?
”

“
No,
”
Jake said.
“
I just have
…
shit.
”

“
You
have shit?
”

“
A
situation,
”
Jake said.
“
I don
’
t want anyone to get hurt. Mostly you. But I want
to be near you, Mel. I want to help you.
”

“
Start
with another kiss,
”
Mel
said.
“
It
’
s the only time I can forget
everything.
”

Jake couldn
’
t resist the temptation. He brought his lips to Mel
’
s once again and kissed her. The
kiss was quick but effective. Jake found himself feeling a little uncomfortable
for the obvious reasons, making it damn near impossible to stand.

“
I
don
’
t get it, Mel,
”
he said.

“
Get
what?
”

“
I
barely know you, I get that. But you are such an honest person. And beautiful.
And cool as hell.
”

“
You
really think that?
”

“
I
think that,
”
Jake said.
“
Trust me, I
’
m not the easiest guy to win
over. You
’
ve won me over.
”

Mel lifted her drink and smiled
with the tiny red straw between her teeth. Jake knew Mel had no idea how sexy
she was and how much she oozed with sexual desire. It made her even more
addicting.

Someone from the club got up on
stage and announced the show was about to start. The first band took the stage
and played. Jake watched and it took him a few minutes to realize he had
reached over and was holding Mel
’
s
hand.

The band was okay, but they were
very obviously new. Jake knew from experience that it took a dozen crap shows
to have one good one. The leader singer had potential, but he needed to stop
screaming and let his natural voice come forward. The front row of people
cheered, probably friends of the band. But that was okay too. All the band
needed was a few fans and then practice, play, and get better.

After just five songs, the band
left the stage.

There was a quick break in which
Jake ordered another beer, and a drink for Mel. She was still close to him, and
in their silence, it was good. Life felt good.

The second band took the stage.
They were more organized and together. The music wasn
’
t bad, but it wasn
’
t
very catchy. The leader singer wore sunglasses and a hat. He gripped the microphone
tight and barely moved. Whether he was scared to death or it was part of his
act, it didn
’
t do much for
the show. That band was given seven songs.

Then it was finally time for Gone
By Autumn to play.

The stage was stripped down and set
up for the headlining band. A banner was hung up with the band
’
s name on it. The drums and
guitars were brought out and tuned. Jake couldn't hide his happiness that he
still got when watching music and bands. He was still so thankful for all of
Fallen Tuesday's struggles to hit it big, because when Chasing Cross gave them
the chance of a lifetime, it made it even better.

“
Is
that what it
’
s like for
you?
”
Mel asked.

“
What?
”

“
Everyone
else setting things up?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Jake said.
“
We have a great team of guys
that work with us. They get the show ready for us.
”