A Twist of Fate (25 page)

- Don’t know who they
are or where we are going, sorry. I wouldn’t say they are your
competition though, just some local guys. I’ll let you know the
time and place later. See you tonight Lexi xx

- See you tonight. I
can give you a ride if you like?

Hmmmm. I
wondered what kind of ride he had in mind? NO! Stop it Lexi! Focus!
He was referring to his car, he knows you don’t have a vehicle here
and was being polite. Still, part of me couldn’t help myself.

- Only if I’m allowed
to drive

- No one drives my car
Lexi

- Well then I guess
I’ll meet you there, talk later. Lexi xx

- Let me know if you
change your mind. Alex xx

I pondered over
the last message; I could read it a couple of different ways. I
wondered if he knew this before he had hit send. I tried to push
those thoughts from my mind, sometimes words were just that -
words, no double meaning. I sighed as I tried to get my mind back
on my work and not on that sexy Viking who now completely occupied
my thoughts. It was going to take some effort.

~~~~~~

I had called
Taylah before leaving work and informed her of the addition to our
group. She seemed excited that I was joining them tonight and was
completely fine with Alex crashing our “date”. She gave me the
details of the gig so I could pass those on to him and she told me
she would buzz me when they were ready to go. She’d assumed I was
traveling with them and I happily accepted the offer.

I sent Alex a
brief message letting him know the details after speaking to Taylah
and got a very lukewarm response.

- 10pm @ Joe’s Pub 425
Lafayette Street. Band is called Insipid. Lexi xx

- Thanks. Alex

Perhaps he was
having second thoughts? Either way, this was not my concern. I had
made a decision which had stopped it being my concern. I turned on
my iPod and listened to the demos Dave had emailed me of the band
we were seeing. He was producing their album but the tracks I heard
were from their self recorded EP. They were rough and unpolished
but still sounded pretty decent. It was heavy on guitars and the
lead singer growled through most of the lyrics, but overall it was
fairly marketable. I sang to the chorus as it came around for the
third time, laughing at the words being overtly sexual and
suggestive. My thoughts turned darker as I remembered Marcy, I
wondered if she knew of Alex’s plans for the evening? Maybe he was
going to bring her? I laughed at the thought of her being
surrounded by grungy rockers, far beyond her comfort zone. If it’s
one thing I was, it was adaptable.

I slithered
into my new True Religion jeans - I was thoroughly enjoying New
York and it’s the shopping. I had already given my credit card a
battering and I had only been in town a week. I matched them with
some chunky studded ankle boots and a simple fitted black tank that
skimmed the top of my waist, exposing a small amount of skin
between the hem of my top and where my pants clung tightly to my
hips. I may have grown older but I was still a little girl who
loved to play dress ups when it came to clothes.

I used my
straightener on my tangled mane so that it was smooth and flat. It
seemed longer now the curls were gone as it fell against my back. I
liked it, it was easier to manage and more fitting for the type of
band we were seeing. I kept my make-up simple, accentuating my eyes
with a dark eyeliner and painting my lips with a nude gloss. I
chuckled at my reflection, I felt like I could potentially be part
of the band.

Taylah gave me
a whistle when I opened the door to greet her, her eyes travelling
over my denim clad legs. We laughed about the logistics of “getting
them off in a hurry” as we walked down to the undercover garage,
Dave chiming in that he was happy to watch if we wanted to
experiment. Taylah gave him the “what is it about guys watching two
girls that is so exciting?” look as he playfully kissed her as we
climbed into his BMW M5.

We chatted on
the car ride over about Taylah’s latest obsession with duck egg
blue, Dave rolling his eyes when she mentioned repainting their
kitchen for the third time in as many years. Dave filled me in on
the history of the band we were heading to see; they were from LA
and named Nirvana and Soundgarden as their biggest influences. They
were young, early to mid 20s and had just been signed to a minor
label. He laughed loudly explaining they probably weren’t even
walking when the whole Seattle Grunge scene exploded but he
admitted they made it work, as there seemed to be this push for all
things retro these days.

We were lucky
to find on-street parking not far from the venue but I immediately
regretted my decision not to bring a coat as I stepped out of the
car. My teeth chattered as I darted to the entrance, my heels
click-clacking behind me as I ran. The bouncer at the door
unashamedly stared at my cleavage before flashing me a smile and
raising the red rope, Dave and Taylah following close behind
me.

“Did you give
him my name for the list?” asked Dave as we pressed through the
crowd in search of a vacant booth.

“He didn’t
ask.” I smiled, a wicked grin teasing my lips.

“He was too
busy staring at her tits!” laughed Taylah as she waved to someone
in the distance she apparently knew. I turned my head to look at
what had garnered her attention and I saw him. Alex. Looking
amazing as always in tight black jeans, tight black v-neck t-shirt
and black boots. He tilted his chin in acknowledgment as he
sauntered over to us, his eyes heated as they scanned my body up
and down.

“Hey, Alex!”
shouted Dave over the current band playing, “What’s shaking
brother? Haven’t seen you in a while. How’s the band?” Dave
continued while giving him a friendly slap on the back.

“Hello Dave,
Taylah.” He nodded at my new friends before turning his head back
to acknowledge me. “Lexi.” He accentuated each letter as it slipped
off his tongue.

I smiled back.
“Hello Alex, I hope you haven’t been waiting long?”

“Not at all.”
He smiled before turning his attention back to Dave, “Band is doing
great man. James and I have had some solid writing sessions. We’re
hoping to start laying down some tracks after New Year’s, get the
new album out in March/April” I watched and listened as both men
chatted amicably about their upcoming projects. Dave suggesting
Alex come over and “Jam” one night and possibly do some co-writing
with him. Taylah saw yet another person she knew and flagged her
over to say hello. I politely greeted Isabel who was also an
interior designer, as they discussed the virtues of Caesar stone
versus granite.

I looked
hungrily at the bar; its high, mirrored shelves were filled with
copious bottles of different shapes and colour. The heat of the
packed club stoked my thirst as a bead of sweat travelled down my
back. I excused myself from the group as I decided to brave the
crowd and attempt to get a drink. I felt Alex’s eyes follow me as I
walked through the maze of bodies. It was getting pretty crowded
and people were jostling for a drink, so I almost didn’t notice
when a hand stretched out to grab my waist. I whipped around to
find Sydney standing behind me.

“Lexi! Hey!
What are you doing here? This place is crazy huh?” Her beaming face
glistened slightly from perspiration.

“Sydney!” I
hugged her, “I was about to punch you!” I laughed. “My neighbour
Dave is producing the next band, thought I’d come by and check them
out.” Sydney nodded as she strained to hear me over the thumping
bass.

“Really? He
knows them?” She grinned excitedly. “The lead singer is super hot.
You think you could get me an introduction?” She looked at me
hopefully with puppy dog eyes.

“Sure,” I
giggled. “Should be no problem, but you know they are like
teenagers right?” I frowned.

“He’s 23 Lexi -
I’m not breaking any laws!” Sydney smiled, “Besides if you get them
young they are generally more “energetic”, saves me money on a
trainer.” She winked and I laughed at her seemingly reasonable
explanation.

“Alex is here
too.” I leant in and whispered in her ear, keeping all emotion out
of my voice.

“Guess, Marcy
gave him a kitchen pass,” she whispered back. I struggled to
contain my laughter.

We finally made
it to the front and ordered some drinks. I assumed Dave and Alex
would probably have a beer so grabbed those as well as an extra
cocktail for Taylah. Sydney helped me navigate through the horde to
carry the drinks back. Dave’s face lit up when he saw the ice cold
long neck in my hand, “Thanks Lexi! You must be a mind reader,” he
mumbled as he took a long swig of his beer, Taylah squealed with
delight when I handed her a cocktail that matched her top perfectly
.

“Yes, thank you
Lexi,” smiled Alex as he brought the bottle to his amazing lips,
his eyes locked on mine as he took a slow mouthful of his drink,
sending a shiver through my body.

“Hello,
Sydney.” Alex smiled after he swallowed his beer, Sydney shouting
back a greeting as she sipped her drink. I introduced Sydney to
Dave and Taylah, telling Dave she was a huge fan of the band. Dave
listened intently as Sydney’s accent thickened with excitement as
she spoke about her favourite song. Dave was only too willing to
introduce us after the show. Sydney’s grin widened at the
prospect.

Alex slid up
beside me and whispered discreetly in my ear, “So how does this
friend thing work? By the way you look amazing tonight.” His breath
tickled my neck.

“I’m not
entirely sure, and thanks,” I whispered back, watching his lips
twist into that wicked half-grin that ignited my core.

“Here I thought
you had it all worked out. You seemed to have a plan.” His hand
brushed along my arm, igniting my skin.

“My plan right
now is to see this band.” I pointed out the young, grungy foursome
who were about to take the stage. He looked up as he settled in
behind me, his hand resting casually against my hip. I glanced down
at his hand then up to his astonishingly clear eyes. I cocked my
eyebrow as I gave him a questioning smirk.

“Just being
friendly,” he smiled as he turned his attention back to the
stage.

“Whatever.” I
mumbled as I faced the energetic front man who was taking his
position in front of the mic.

“Good Evenin’,”
bellowed the heavily tattooed singer trying to work the crowd in to
a frenzy. The girls at the front of the stage were more than happy
to accommodate by screaming and yelling out their I love you’s. The
drummer counted the band in with his sticks before they launched
into their first song. The crowd erupted as the sound exploded from
the amps. Sydney smiled at me as she pointed out the object of her
affection (though I was sure it was more lust than anything else).
I nodded as I acknowledged that while he wasn’t my “type” he had a
certain something. Alex rolled his eyes at the guitarist’s
salacious hip thrusting; I had to admit he reminded me of a cheesy
80’s hair band. He was trying entirely too hard.

The ensemble as
a whole was passable. You could see they were young and
inexperienced; the performance seemed over-rehearsed and slightly
clichéd. The singer, while oozing confidence, did not have the
stage presence or talent of James or Alex. The rest of the band
looked slightly uneasy. While being competent, they were far from
polished.

The crowd
cheered loudly through the set. The girls screamed feverishly when
the singer pulled off his shirt and continued to sing topless. Alex
observed silently, his hand fixed to my side as he scanned the
band, paying close attention to the guitarist’s fingers as they
travelled up the fret board. I relaxed into his chest, the close
proximity of his body strangely reassuring and yet exciting. Dave
looked on like a proud father, I gave him the thumbs up and he shot
me a beaming smile.

“Thank you and
GOOD NIGHT,” hollered the singer, raising his arms dramatically as
he dropped his microphone to floor. The feedback squealed before
someone finally cut the sound. Alex frowned, shaking his head as
the singer grabbed a random girl from the audience, giving her an
opened mouth kiss as he walked off the stage.

“Young and
enjoying the fame,” smiled Dave. “They have a lot to learn. Come
with me, I’ll introduce you guys.” He led us over to the edge of
the stage where a large, angry looking bouncer stood guard. “Hey
man, these guys are with me.” Dave gestured to us as the bouncer
stepped aside to let us through.

We walked
through the dark backstage area. While littered with a few fans and
groupies, it was nothing like the backstage of a Power Station
show. There was no real organisation and the band didn’t even have
a dressing room; they just congregated out the back, sitting on
road cases as they dried themselves off with towels.

“Zander, great
show man! I got some people I’d like you to meet,” Dave called out
to the tall, tattooed singer who was high-fiving the bass
player.

“Dave, so glad
you made it! Great show! Sorry about throwing the mic, I know that
shit pisses you off!” winced Zander as he embraced Dave in a manly
hug.

“Yeah just
remember dude, you need to pay your dues before you start acting
like a rock star,” laughed Dave as he slapped Zander hard across
the back.

“Well you guys
know Taylah, but this is my neighbour Lexi and her friend Sydney.”
Dave pointed to us as the band nodded and smiled. “This is Zander,
the singer. Johnny on guitar, Ben on Bass and Danny on the drums.”
He gestured to each of them before turning back to us.

“And Alex here
decided to come check you guys out too.” Dave grinned as the band’s
face lit up with the realization they had a celebrity in their
presence.

“Alex, big fan”
gushed Johnny as he seized Alex’s hand. “That second album was off
the chart, was that a Strat you were playing?” he questioned as he
ignored the rest of us. I didn’t blame him; Alex was amazing on the
guitar.