Love's Back Pocket (17 page)

Chapter 33

“Well?” Tanya asked, raking her fingers through her hair as she gave Holly a studious look. “What do you think?”

Holly turned and regarded herself in the full-length mirror. Her eyes widened as she took herself in. She hadn’t looked like this in … well, ever, really. Holly never had the desire to dress this way, but at the same time, she felt … free. However, she knew that after tonight, she would stick to her hoodies and jeans, but on such a special occasion as this and with a reason for this style of dress, Holly knew this particular outfit would work. Initially, she felt slightly uncomfortable, but the more she looked at her reflection, the more she became comfortable with it, at least for tonight.

Holly’s hair was curled and down—despite it being already wavy—and the makeup she wore was slightly more dramatic, dark, but made her brown eyes pop. She wore a dark maroon shirt with a low-draped front and rhinestone accent on the back so pieces of her flesh showed through. For pants, she had on a black glitter-banded stretch flares and golden high heels. Holly pressed her newly-red lips together, unsure if she could actually go out like this. What would people think? That she was a slut? Because she wasn’t. She was totally the opposite of a slut, thank you very much.

“You’re not a slut, Holl,” Tanya said dryly, as though she could read Holly’s mind, which was quite easy for the brunette, actually. “You know, if you think you look like a slut, what do you think of me, since I’m always wearing outfits like these?”

“You can pull the look off, though, Tanya,” Holly replied, craning her neck over her shoulder so she could get a better look at her friend. “I can pull off the just-rolled-out-of-bed look. You can pull the sexy-siren look.”

“I’m not sure whether or not I should take that as a compliment,” Tanya mumbled. “Ah, who cares? C’mon, Holly.” Tanya grabbed Holly’s wrist and all but dragged her to the door. “We’re going to be late! And we don’t want to be late, do we? Not tonight, anyway …”

--

As Holly was expecting, the New York nightclub was substantially crowded, but since Tanya was quite skillful when it came to situations like these, the two women managed to weasel their way up to the front. Holly tried to make sure to keep an eye out for Brendan, but as of yet, she couldn’t see him through the thick crowd. After an hour, Mitch came up on stage by himself. Holly and Tanya gave each other an odd look; they never started a show with only one man coming out, even if it was to introduce the band itself.

“Hey, everyone,” Mitch began, grabbing the microphone off the stand. The crowd cheered in response, “I wanted to take this time to thank you all for coming. This is our last show, and obviously, it’s going to be the best one yet because of you guys.” The crowd cheered again, with Holly and Tanya adding to the sound. From the corner of her eye, Holly could see the pure happiness radiating from Tanya’s smile as she watched Mitch speak. It was obvious how much she cared about him, how proud she was of him. “I know this is sort of out of the ordinary—me, being alone here upstage.” He paused as a sheepish smile took hold of his features, and he glanced down at the floor of the stage before peering on out. “I’m not sure if you know this or not, but the night we started the tour, I fell in love …”

Tanya glanced over at Holly with a quirked brow, wondering if the redhead had any idea what Mitch was doing, but Holly seemed just as dumbfounded as Tanya did. She turned her brown eyes back up at Mitch, who seemed to be searching for her through the crowd.

“Tanya, where are you?” he asked, before the young woman he had been looking for raised her hand as high as it would go, and started waving it in hopes to catch his attention. “Ah, there you are.” He smiled as he walked over to the part of stage so he could look at Tanya more clearly. “Listen, babe, I’ve never actually done this before, and some may think that we’re moving way too fast, but …” Another sheepish smile touched his features as he reached up and scratched the back of his head. “I can’t stop thinking about you. I want to wake up next to you for the rest of my life. Um …” He reached inside his leather jacket pocket as he knelt down on one knee, and opened the box, producing a ring. The crowd literally went wild, and both Tanya and Holly froze. “Will you do me the honor of making me the
happiest
man on the planet by agreeing to marry me?”

Oddly enough, the audience quieted substantially, so much so that one could hear a pin drop. “Of course!” Tanya called, before heading over to the side of the stage with the intent of rushing onto it. Security already knew her, and they moved to the side so Tanya could all but dash up on stage and crash into him so that he nearly fell over. “Yes,” she said more quietly, nodding as tears touched her eyes. “Yes!”

The audience started cheering, and neither Mitch nor Tanya could keep delirious smiles off of their faces as Mitch slid the ring onto her finger. When he finished, he picked Tanya up bridal-style and carried her off the stage as he kissed her passionately on the lips.

Holly couldn’t believe anything that had happened, and even though she knew that knowing someone for nearly three months in no way constituted them with the knowledge to keep a marriage together, oddly enough, she was ecstatic, enthused, and absolutely delighted at her friend’s happiness. And if anyone could make a marriage work with only three months of relationship under her belt, it would definitely be Tanya.

--

“There he is!” Holly exclaimed, pointing at a familiar figure standing with a woman who had similar features. Currently, both women were backstage after the concert, and all Holly had been doing for the past fifteen minutes was trying to find Brendan while simultaneously attempting to avoid Tommy.

“There he is,” Tanya murmured, her eyes solely focused on her newly-acquired fiancé.

Holly rolled her eyes when she realized she wasn’t going to get much out of her, and decided to leave Tanya’s side in hopes to go over and speak to Brendan. When she was in his line of sight, his blue eyes lit up and that boyish smile Holly had fallen for a while ago touched his features in such simplistic beauty. And yet, as Holly forced her lips to smile back, she noticed that her heart didn’t do the usual thump-skip-thump it normally did upon seeing Brendan. Sure, he looked the same, and Holly knew the older woman next to him was his sister, but the spark that usually flared whenever she saw him had … fizzled. A small frown touched Holly’s lips as she placed one hand on her hip. But why?

---

“Ah,” a familiar drawl said from besides the woman. “So this must be that guy from that school you used to go to.” Holly turned, giving Tommy a dry look, as though nothing had changed between them. However, upon looking into those pale eyes of his, Holly sorely misinterpreted her heart, because when she recognized that sparkle, her heart skipped as it normally would when Brendan was in her sight. “Didn’t you have a thing for this guy? I mean, so he’s tall. And he has blue eyes. And—“

Before Tommy could finish, Brendan and his sister reached them. Immediately, Brendan pulled Holly into a tight hug, causing a growl to lodge itself in Tommy’s throat and him to look away, scoffing as he did so. What right did this guy have to hug his woman?

Wait, Holly wasn’t—

Oh, just stop denying it, Tommy
, a voice inside said, frustrated that Tommy was still playing himself as a fool.
You’ve known that something was different about her from the moment you laid eyes on her, which was why you invited her along to go on tour with you. And in these past three months, you’ve grown to like her, to respect her, to lo—

“And this is Tommy,” Holly introduced, nodding at the singer.

“I still can’t believe you know him,” Brendan’s sister, Sandra murmured, before turning her attention to Tommy. “I’m a huge fan! I can’t thank you enough for the backstage passes. Do you mind if I take a picture?”

Sandra went to stand next to Tommy while Holly went over to Brendan, who was currently positioned to take the picture. “You know,” he said to Holly, just as he flashed the camera, “me and my sister are meeting up with some friends for coffee. I was wondering if you wanted to come along and catch up?”

“No,” Tommy answered for her, releasing Sandra and ignoring her thanks. “No. Holly, shouldn’t you and Tanya be … planning a wedding or something?”

Holly narrowed her eyes in Tommy’s direction, giving him a warning look. “I always have time to catch up with old friends,” she murmured, and before Tommy could stop her, she was gone.

Chapter 34

Holly followed Brendan and Sandra through the dark streets of New York. She had never been to New York before, and though it was just after eleven o’clock at night, the summer night was warm. Brendan and Sandra were chatting amiably, Holly adding input here and there when she saw fit, but if she was being honest, she really wasn’t interested in conversation now. Her eyes flitted around her environment, trying to shake off an unsettling feeling deeply embedded in the pit of her heart. What surprised Holly about New York was how many regular people were still habiting the cafés. For someone accustomed to going to bed relatively early and being used to the fact that only clubbers and bar hoppers stayed out, it was actually refreshing for her seeing people her age with no intent to drink and every intention to have fun. Though her thoughts were quite troubling, it made her smile, albeit a small one.

Looking at Brendan from the corner of her eye, Holly tried to tell herself once again how much she liked him. And not Tommy. She reminded herself of all the adorable things Brendan did, like when he would smile, his eyes would crinkle, or when he was frustrated with a paper he was working on, he’d all but gnaw off the cap of the pen he was writing with. And who could forget that breathtaking smile that lit up his entire face and set off those blue eyes of his? Yet …

Holly shook her head. It was no use. No matter how many times she told herself that Brendan was the more logical choice, the better candidate, when it came to attaining her affection, her heart wouldn’t listen. She’d be a fool to tell herself otherwise. No matter how badly she wanted to like Brendan and not Tommy, she knew that it didn’t matter. Love was the most irrational emotion she had ever experienced, and to be honest, she wasn’t very amused by its antics. It had impeccable timing, really, showing up just when Tommy was having fun with one of his usual floozies.

It’s only usual if he does it on a constant basis
, a voice in her head taunted.
And if you remember right, that was the first one.

“Nice weather we’re having, hmm?” a voice asked, interrupting Holly’s thoughts.

“What?” Holly craned her head up to look over into Brendan’s eyes. “Oh. Well, I’m not so sure. I really don’t like the heat all too much.”

“Huh,” Brendan said, nodding a couple times as he looked ahead of him. “Well, whatever works for you, you know?”

Holly smiled, but said nothing.

“Yeah, and in, like, two hours, I bet it’ll start raining,” Sandra joked, before focusing on Holly. “So Holly,” she began, tilting her head forward so she could get a better look at her younger brother’s school friend. “You went on tour with Tommy Nye and
The Futurists
for the whole summer, correct?” Again, Holly said nothing but nodded a couple of times. She really didn’t want to talk about Tommy, especially when her thoughts were muddled by the man. “How was that? I love the band. I want to know, especially with everything Tommy’s been through … I mean, what did you think of him?”

Holly was quiet for a long portion of time, trying to think of the correct thing to say. She wanted to be honest while maintaining the privacy instilled in her as a psychologist. Plus, there were some things she didn’t want anybody to know. “Tommy is probably the most unique person I have ever met,” she finally said. “But with that, I find that I can learn from him, and for the past few months, I have.”

Before Sandra could press for more details, Brendan turned into an outdoor café called The Healing Garden. It was crowded as well, but upon further inspection, Holly realized Brendan must be meeting somebody here.

And Holly was right.

In the corner of the boxed section, Brendan sat at a table with two women who were waiting for him.

“Holly,” Brendan said, flashing his smile over at her as both Holly and Sandra took seats next to each other and across from everyone else, “I want you to meet someone.” He slipped his arm around the auburn-haired woman he was sitting next to, his eyes taking on a different light as he looked at her. “This is my long-distance girlfriend, Janet. Janet, this is Holly, the girl I was telling you about.”

So Brendan had a girlfriend? Maybe that was why when she looked at him nowadays, she didn’t exactly
feel
anything, at least not like she used to.

That’s bullshit
, a voice in her head told her,
and you know it. Tommy is the reason you don’t feel anything for Brendan. If Brendan didn’t have a girlfriend and hit on you, you still wouldn’t go out with him because of how you feel for Tommy.

Though Holly plastered a smile on her face as Brendan made the necessary introductions, she realized that that thought was the most troubling one of all.

--

The ticking of the clock did absolutely nothing to calm Tommy’s nerves. How long had she been gone now?
Too
long, if you asked him. But then again, even he would admit that Holly spending thirty seconds with another guy was too long. For the fifth time in two minutes, Tommy ran his fingers through his hair. He was currently seated on the couch in the living room of the flat the band had rented, staring at the door and willing it to open. A few moments ago, he had peered out the window in hopes to catch her walking up to the lobby. But he only saw grey clouds that looked like they were going to spill with rain at any moment. No sign of Holly.

She wouldn’t spend the night with the guy, would she? Holly wasn’t like that, was she?
He tried to reason with himself that Holly wasn’t the sort of girl who would just sleep with a guy, and he might have been successful had his nagging thoughts not brought up the fact that she knew him long before Tommy ever came into the picture. Even if Holly did show up—alone, by the way—what would he say to her? Should he apologize for hurting her with the groupie? Should he tell her that he might have strong feelings about her on the matter?

At that moment, Mitch walked in from his bedroom to find Tommy sitting on the couch. “Wow,” he murmured, his low voice echoing in his throat. “You look like shit.”

Tommy glanced over at his friend with his sparkle-less eyes of his, but the right corner of his lips curled up into a lopsided smirk. “I can always count on you to give it to me straight, hmm?” he asked in his low voice, but even Mitch could see the effort it took for Tommy to even joke.

“She’ll be back,” Mitch tried to reassure him, knowing exactly what was on Tommy’s mind.

At first, Tommy was surprised Mitch knew anything at all, but then he remembered just whom Mitch was dating. Actually, dating wasn’t the term anymore, was it? “Hey,” Tommy said, shifting his body so it faced Mitch’s somewhat, “can I ask you something?” Mitch nodded, but said nothing. “What made you propose to Tanya so quickly? I mean, congratulations, mazal tov, you know, and the like. But you guys have been dating, if that’s even the right word, for three months now. How do you know you want to—that you
can
—spend the rest of your life with this woman?”

Mitch shrugged, a smile touching his lips. “I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with Tanya from the moment I saw her,” he told Tommy honestly. “I can’t exactly explain it to you. There’s just something about that woman that makes me weak and yet strong at the same time. I didn’t want someone else to sweep her up and take her away from me, because, let’s face it, somebody would. And I know it might sound weird, but the fact that I can’t explain my brashness only proves to me that the way I feel for Tanya is completely genuine.”

“And how is that?” Tommy asked, his arms crossed over his chest as he tried to keep the dryness out of his voice.

“Because if you can explain it,” Mitch said, “then love has become … I don’t know … logical. And love is anything
but
. You don’t need reasons to love somebody. You just do. And if you find that kind of love with someone, I highly recommend hanging onto it, even if you have to be a fool to attain it. Now,” he stood up, “my fiancée awaits. And don’t worry. She’ll come back. I promise.”

“Yeah,” Tommy murmured through a heavy sigh as Mitch headed back into his room. “I certainly hope so.”