The Prince of Punk Rock (51 page)

“It was fuckin’ awesome.
 
Better than anything I’ve seen in a long
time.
 
Tommy, I never knew you could play
like that.
 
You were aces.”

Tommy was glowing. He didn’t know
why he was looking for Brian’s approval, but he was, and he somehow felt
vindicated.
 
He was glad that any
lingering animosity about his abrupt departure from Psychobabble wasn’t an
issue with Brian.
 
They never had an
actually fight or end to their friendship.
 
It just seemed to dissipate.
 
“Are
you still in a band?
 
Still singing?”

“Yep.
 
Still with Psychobabble.”

“You’re a singer too?” Angel asked.

“Yeah, but I’m more of a screamer
than a singer.
 
Real hardcore stuff.”

“That’s right. I forgot my boy,
here, was a metal head.”
 
Angel put his
arm around Tommy and gave him a small, affectionate kiss.

Tommy waited for Brian’s reaction,
but Brian played it cool even though Tommy knew that he was disturbed by their
man on man kiss.
 
He didn’t think Brian
was homophobic, just shocked at Tommy’s bisexuality.
 
It was ironic because back when they were in
Psychobabble together, he would have died before he let Brian see him kiss
another man.
 
Now he openly boasted his
relationship with Angel, and he enjoyed the shocked look on Brian’s face when
he first learned about it.

Tommy kept his eye out for
Jessi.
 
He always did in a crowded
room.
 
He worried about her.
 
It was habit born from his need to protect
her. He didn’t know what she needed protection from, but he always wanted to
know that she was within his field of vision and make sure she was OK.
 
She was with Alyssa at the other end of the
bar.
 
She turned to him, and threw a kiss
from her fingertips in his direction.
 
He
continued to watch her, just because he loved to look at her when she was
unaware of his gaze, but she caught him.

She came over to him, and put her
arms around his neck.
 
“Why were you
watching me?”

“Because I love you.”

“Aww.”
 
She started kissing him, shoving her tongue
deep into his mouth and pressing her breasts and pelvis against his body.
 
She had a little too much to drink and, even
though his hard-on was fighting him about it, he took her hands from around his
neck and pulled her off him.

A few minutes later Jessi had another
shot of tequila in her hand.

“Take it easy.
 
You’re drinking too much.”

She rolled her eyes at him.

“I’m serious.”

“Stop worrying about me, baby.
 
I’m fine.
 
I’m just having a good time.”

He didn’t know what else to
do.
 
He didn’t want to make a scene and
sound like a controlling husband, but he didn’t want her to get sick.

Angel patted his leg.
 
“I’ll take care of it.”
 
He walked up behind Jessi, and put his arms
around her waist.
 
“What do you got
there, sweetheart?”

She leaned into him “A shot of tequila.
Do you want one?”

“No. I want you to put it down.”

“Did Tommy send you over here?”

“Just give me the shot.
  
No more, sweetie.”

She shook her head.
 
It became a game of cat and mouse. Jessi
dangled the shot glass in front of Angel, and she pulled it away just when he
was about to grab it.

“You leave me no choice but to play
dirty.”
 
He grabbed her by the hips and
pulled her close to him.
 
He rubbed his
body against hers, and gave her a deep, penetrating kiss.
 
You could see Jessi melt into him.
 
While Angel was still kissing her, he took
the shot glass out of her hand and ran away with it.

Jessi threw her head back and
laughed.
 
She stomped her foot and shook
her fist in the air.
 
“You’re nothing but
a fuckin’ tease, Angel Garcia!”

Angel won the game and put prize on
the bar in front of Brian.
 
“She’s cut
off. No more shots for her.”

Tommy sighed with relief.
 
“Thank you.”
 
He only meant to give Angel a closed mouth kiss, but watching Angel kiss
Jessi excited him, and he ended up giving Angel a long, wet kiss.
 
The fans were getting quite the show tonight.

Brian was staring at them.
 
“Holy fuckin’ shit.”
 
He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of
his nose.
 
“I can’t believe what I’m
seeing here tonight.
 
Not only are you a
rock star, but you’re gay.
 
You let this
guy stick his tongue down your wife’s throat, and then you thanked him.
 
What the fuck else is going to happen
tonight?
 
Man, you really changed from
the last time I saw you.”

Tommy knew Brian would be
shocked.  But he really didn’t change.
 
He was still the same person, only now he was
no longer a slave to his inhibitions, bound by the fears of rejection.
 
He was finally free.

The show left Jessi too excited to
sleep.
 
She wanted to take in the glory
of tonight’s success.
 
Tommy and Angel were
exhausted and already dropped off, so she was left staring at the ceiling,
unable to think about anything except the energy of the crowd.

She still heard the cheers and the
applause of the audience in her head. She didn’t want the night to end and wished
Tommy and Angel were awake, but they needed sleep.
  
They were all heading out on the tour bus in
three days for the next show.

She didn’t realize she fell asleep
until she suddenly woke, shaking and scared.
 
She didn’t remember the nightmare that made her heart pulsate between
her ears, but it left her frightened and anxious.
 
She reached for Tommy to comfort her
trembling body, but her hand fell on his empty pillow.
 
She stretched her arm further and accidentally
touched Angel’s cheek.

His eyes fluttered open.

“Where’s Tommy?”

Angel was groggy and his voice was
mumbled. “Downstairs . . . working on a riff or something.”

She tugged on his shirt.
 
“I had a bad dream.”

He never opened his eyes, but he
extended his arm in her direction and invited her into his embrace.
 
She snuggled up to his shoulder and his
strong arm pulled her into his chest.
 
His arms were longer than Tommy’s and it enveloped her in a protective
semi-circle.
 
Her fear quickly abated
under Angel’s comforting touch.
 
She
heard his breathing deepen as slumber fell upon him, but his arm still hugged
her tightly.
 
She watched Angel’s broad
chest rise and fall in the shadows that filtered in from the full moon.
 
She slid her hand across his torso and
lightly caressed his chest fingering one of his dark pink nipples.
 
She watched his face for a reaction, but
sleep obviously had Angel under its realm.

She ran her hand around his neck
and pressed her body against his.
 
The
soft mound between her legs thumped at the closeness of their bodies.
 
She reached up and kissed Angel’s sleeping
lips. He surprised her by returning her kiss.
 
She opened her mouth slightly and his tongue found its way inside.
 
She held his cheek in place so he didn’t turn
away, while reveling in his arms.
 
It was
just the two of them, sharing a kiss.
 
She imagined they were lovers and their kiss was a prelude to their love
making.
 
Her hand moved to Angel’s chest
and she fondled one of his nipples again.
 
He smiled under their kiss.

Her mind was reeling.
 
She wanted him.
 
Maybe this was the incentive Angel needed to
sleep with her.
 
He continued to kiss her
and she dared to move her hand lower, but hesitated.
 
Tommy was missing and his absence left her
with a huge wad of guilt.
 
She didn’t
want to sleep with Angel behind Tommy’s back.
 
It was wrong without Tommy, but she had no control over the hand that
slid down Angel’s taught abs.
 
She cupped
the bulge in his shorts and its softness disappointed her.
 
He broke away from her kiss.

“Do you want to get Tommy, or
should I?”

“I’ll get him.”
 
As she padded her way down the stairs, she
reminded herself that she needed to stop thinking about Angel in a sexual context.
 
Their love life was complicated enough.

Chapter Forty-One

The tour bus was small and cramped
and stuffy.
 
It was understated and
lackluster, but it was still a thrill to be touring.
 
They already played shows in
New Jersey
,
Maryland
and
Pennsylvania
.
 
Each show was a new experience and offered
the opportunity to meet new fans.

Marissa rarely stepped foot on the
tour bus.
 
The label sent her from venue
to venue in a private limo and she stayed at modest hotels.
 
So, her arrival on the bus triggered
everyone’s attention.
 
They immediately
quieted down and exchanged worried glances as soon as they saw her graceful
figure making its way down the corridor of the tour bus.

“Good morning, everyone.
 
I have a message from Mr. Ableman.
 
He’s here, at our
Connecticut
office and he called an
emergency meeting.
 
We need to get there
right away.”

“All of us?” Jimmy asked, knowing
that Mr. Ableman had limited contact with anyone other than Angel.

“No.
 
He wants to see Angel, Tommy and Jessi.”