Then Kiss Me (8 page)

I got closer to where the band was, and there were lot
s of people surrounding them
.  I was having a hard time getting closer, although, if I’d been willing to spill my beer, I probably could have gotten up close faster.  I’m sure if I’d rubbed up against the right guys I could have advanced more quickly too.  But that was part of what was taking me so long too.  I was sti
ll on the lookout for my
fellas
, and I couldn’t see them anywhere.

The band finished playing Lamb of God and the lead singer started talking.  He had a nice voice…smooth and
rich
, and
I
hadn’t expected that after the death-metal-type scream he’d
been rocking
.  He said, “Okay, guys, you’ve been listening to our specialty all night—covers of some of our favorite bands.  But now we’re
gonna
play an original tune for you, something we like to call ‘Fuck You’.”  I almost started laughing.  Why the hell not?  It suited the music.

So they started up…
the song
had an insistent, hardcore beat right off the bat.  I liked it and I wondered why these guys were playing in this rinky-dink town instead of going to the big city where they could really draw a crowd.  I swallowed a large gulp of beer and thought,
Crowds be damn
ed
.  I became a little more aggressive about making my way through the tight-knit mob surrounding the band and
, at last,
I wound up at the inner circle.  There.  Now I could see these guys.

Wow. 
So fuc
king cool.
  The lead singer had the crowd enrapt.  Now that I was closer, I could appreciate how hard these guys were working…two guitarists, a bassist, and, of course, a drummer.  But…wait
a fucking minute
.  What the hell?  The drummer was—I felt a shiver crawl up my spine and wrench me at the base of the neck—Scott.  Holy fucking shit! 
He’d never said anything about being in a band, and he hadn’t even said it when he’d invited me to this little shindig.

I froze.  Scott was maniacal on the drums, beating out the kind of rhythm usually demanded by speed metal.  God…no wonder his guns were so well defined.

And guess what?  I love metal music, so seeing Scott in a band made me want him all the more.  I’d been crushing before; now I was desirous
beyond belief
.
  Hot as hell, a bit of a playful
teasing
shit, some sweet tattoos,
and
he played in a band?  I was fucking smitten
and so ready to jump that boy’s bones
.

And I couldn’t pull my eyes off him.  Jesus…he was really good.  What the hell was he doing flipping burgers at Bob’s? 
He was intense, really into what he was doing.  His hair was matted against his forehead by sweat, and every time I felt a cool breeze, I was sure he was grateful.  Or maybe he didn’t even notice.  He was so focused, it wouldn’t have surprised me.

As the song ended, the lead singer shouted
out a
long thanks and started introducing members of the band.  It was then that I noticed Scott’s eyes were scanning the crowd.  The teenage girl inside me squealed with delight, waiting to see the look on his face when he spotted me.  But the singer got to Scott before he could finish looking and Scott stood and bowed his head while the crowd (myself included) went wild.  We went crazy for each band member, but I personally gave a little extra for the guy I had the
hots
for.

The lead singer said, “We’re
gonna
play one more song and then take a break.  So, folks, could you give us a direct line to the beer
when it’s time
?  Otherwise, our break’s
gonna
last a
long time
and you won’t be able to say shit about it
.”  While he was talking, Scott continued scanning the crowd.  His eyes found me and, sure as shit, they lit up.  I smiled and waved and he pointed a drumstick at me to acknowledge me.  Then the band started playing Machine Head’s song “Locust” and Scott joined th
em a few bars in.

I didn’t take my eyes off him, and I could tell he knew I was watching him.  God, I hope I wasn’t making him nervous.  At the same time, I wanted him to have the satisfaction that he’d gotten my attention on a huge level.

I’d never realized how long the song was until I had to wait impatiently for it to end.  But it did finally and the band set down their equipment to get some refreshment.  Scott walked over to me, though (goodie!). 
I asked him,
“Did you want to get some beer?”

“Hell, yeah.”

So we started walking behind the other band members back to the deck where all the beer was.  The crowd had parted, just as the singer had asked, to make room for them.  “Why’d you keep this such a big secret?”

Scott chuckled.  “What? 
The party?”

Like I said, from one smartass to another.
 
So my comeback?
  “Yeah…I’m wondering why you didn’t tell me about it weeks ago.
  I could’ve lined up a date.
”

He must have liked my
stupid joke and
dry delivery because he laughed again.  “I
dunno
.
” 
Then more serious.
 
“
I don’t talk about it, but everybody knows.”

“Yeah…everybody except the new girl.  And…”—he looked over at me, eyebrows raised—“I suspect you wanted to surprise me.”

The smile never left his face. 
“Maybe.”
  We started walking up the steps to the deck.  “So…what do you think?”

I tried not to over-gush.  I needed to be cool.  I didn’t need to go all
fangirl
on him. 
Spazzy
fangirl
wasn’t sexy in the least.  “You guys kick ass.”

Scott looked skeptical.  “Not just saying that?”

“No way.
  The music’s not exactly my cup of tea…”

He frowned as we got close to the keg.  Someone was filling up cups for all the band members.  “If I had a dime for every girl who said that…”

“No…I like it.  I love it actually. 
Your music
’s just a little harder than I’m used to.”

He raised his eyebrows and took the cup full of beer from the guy filling it.  “Thanks, man.”  He looked back to me and we started walking back the way we came.  “
Yep, I’ve heard that one too. 
What kind of music do you usually listen to?”

“Hard rock, metal.
  Just not as heavy as what you’re playing.”

H
e raised his eyebrows
.  “So who’s your favorite band?”

I took a deep breath.  I hadn’t been asked that in a long time, and I wondered if I could narrow it down.  Well, of course
,
I could.  “That’d have to be Slipknot.”

He took my chin in his hand
and said, “There’s hope for you yet.”

“Hey
,
Scott
,
Casey!”
  We turned to the side and saw David approaching from the right.

I waved. 
“Hi, David.”
  He embraced me when he got to us.

“So what do you think?”

“About what?”
  I knew what he was asking, but I was going to be a pain in the ass about it.

“Scott.
”

Oh…that was too wide open.  What I thought about Scott probably shouldn’t have been said out loud, at least not in front of all those people.  All I knew was just looking at him made me feel like my thighs were melting, like my bones were collapsing, like I could just rub my legs
together like a cricket and have an orgasm.  But I knew that wasn’t what David was asking.  I could tell from Scott’s expression when I looked at him, though, that he might have had an idea of what my dirty mind was thinking.  But I smiled and looked back to David and said, “Holy shit.  I had no idea.  I pulled up to this place and heard the band…liked them.  Totally freaked out when I realized I knew the drummer.”

“See?” David said, looking at Scott.  “I told you she’d like your band.  She listens to the right stuff.”

I grinned and rolled my eyes.  The lead singer walked past and slapped Scott on the shoulder. 
“Ready to do this?”
  Scott nodded.  The singer looked over at David. 
“Hey, Dave.”

David nodded.  “Lee
, y
ou sound great as always.”

“Thanks.”

Scott said, “Lee, this is our friend Casey.”

He smiled and flashed me a look I was fairly used to seeing.  But I could tell the guys with me didn’t much care for it.  Lee offered his hand and shook mine.  I was almost surprised he didn’t bring my hand to his lips and kiss it, the way he was acting.  But he said, “Nice to meet you” and then let go and started walking down the stairs.

“Guess that’s my cue,” Scott said.  I smiled but I could tell the mood had cooled. 
Shit.
  I couldn’t help it this guy was a little aggressive, and it certainly didn’t mean I was interested. 
If Scott hadn’t been around, maybe…

So Scott followed his
bandmates
, ready to play their second set.

I started to walk back down the steps off the deck, but David said, “Casey, the
view’s
much better here.”

“Not if I can get front row.”

“Yeah, but we can’t talk there.”

“Oh…”  I took the hint.  “So what’s going on?”

“Just wondered what you thought about the band.”

“Holy shit…impressive.
  Have they written a lot of original stuff?”

“Not lots…they started out doing covers, but over the last year, they’ve been writing some of their own stuff.  It’s been pretty cool.”

I nodded but kept my lip zipped.  David acted like he had more to say.  He pointed over to the right down on the lawn where there were lights strewn about because the floodlights couldn’t quite reach.  “Do you see that
kinda
tall guy by those white chairs?”

I followed where his finger pointed.  “There are a
lot
of people, David, and a lot of white chairs.”

“The
tallest
guy, Casey.”

Oh.  Okay.  Found him. 
“Yeah.
  What about him?”

“I think he was hitting on me a while ago.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah…but I got nervous and told him I was going to get a beer.”

“So
what the hell
are you still
doing
here?”  He looked at me.  “Or don’t you like him?”

“Oh, I really like him.  It’s just…”

“What?”

“You’re not originally from Winchester, are you?”  I shook my head, still failing to see the point.  “When it comes to gays, the folks in town aren’t as progressive as I’d like.  No one actually
says
anything, but you know what they’re thinking.  It makes me uncomfortable.  So I prefer to d
ate guys from Colorado Springs if I can.  Then I don’t have to worry about all that.”

“David…your heart knows what it wants.  Who gives a shit if he’s from here?  Don’t you deserve to be happy?”  David’s worry seemed to dissolve from his eyes a bit.  I nudged his arm with my shoulder.  “Just go back there.  If it’s meant to happen, it will.”

He smiled and then hugged me.  “You’re right.”  He let go and looked back over at the guy across the yard.  “I’m
gonna
go for it.”

And after he left, his potential love interest in his sights, I moved my eyes back to mine.  Watching Scott pound
those drums relentlessly made my
heart beat in time.  Yeah…I had it bad.  And even though the mood was cooler, Scott walked me to my car when all was said and done.  There was no hug and no kiss, but there was hope…and that was all I needed.

Chapter Five

AS THOUGH SOMETHING
in the universe suspected I was happy
(couldn’t have that!)
, I got a phone call from Barry the next morning.  Apparently, mom had given him my cell number.  But I’d been in the shower when he called, so I hadn’t had to talk to him.  His message was simple but quite clear.  “Okay, Casey.  You’ve had your fun.  You’ve had your freedom.  But now I know you realize the divorce was a stupid mistake.  It’s time to come home.  Just give me a call, all right?”  I heard a girl in the background saying something.  He might have been at work, so it could have been a coworker or his secretary, but her tone—even though I couldn’t understand her words—sounded invested.  Or maybe I was reading more into it than it merited.