Fall From Grace (18 page)

My face burned.  Lea stepped closer to me, knowing exactly how hard I wanted to hit Tucker in the face.  I stopped myself before I could pull my fist back. He was not going to ruin this night for me.  I grabbed him tight around his forearm, digging my nails in.  I didn’t stop, even when I heard him groan in pain.

I yanked him with me.

“Whoa, she definitely wants me right now!” Tucker disgustingly called to his friends.

Shane stalked off to the stage, followed by Ethan and Brayden.

I stopped only a few feet away, making sure we were still in view of everyone.  I balled my fists tight and grabbed his suit jacket.  I dragged his face a few inches above mine. His breath smelled like whiskey.  “You are the most conceited, self-centered ass that I have ever met!  Don’t you ever put your hands on me again, and do not talk to me about how you want to sleep with me, because it ain’t happening.  Now, Tucker, I had enough class not to smack the skin off your face in front of all your friends over there, but if you disrespect me one more time, I will not stop myself from hitting you.  Got it?”

His shoulders slouched down.  “I really like you.  You’re so beautiful.”

Feeling guilty, I let go of him.  “Tucker, when you drink, you have a nasty habit of making people feel like they aren’t worth much.  I’m more than someone who is just beautiful and you haven’t even tried to get to know me.  I’m sorry, Tucker, you’re a nice guy when you’re not drinking, but I gave you a chance and I didn’t like how you treated me.”  I walked away.

I got to the stage and looked back. Tucker was already talking to a group of other girls.  Yes, I was just a pretty little bauble to look at.

Shane was plugging our guitars in when I climbed up.   His eyes quickly scanned over me.  “I guess Tucker’s pretty fast, huh?” he sneered.

If Shane were any other person, I would have said he was acting jealous, but this was Shane, and he’d never had feelings for anyone.  I watched his expression.  His forehead was scrunched together and his lips were tight.  Four full shot glasses were on the amp next to him.   He knocked back one and slammed it down empty, next to the others, glaring at me.

I shoved him lightly against the wall of the stage, behind the tall speakers, where no one could see.  I left my head on his chest were I had pushed him.  His heart raced below my fingertips.

He looked down at my hand and slowly raised his eyes to mine, his hands reached out softly to keep me at a distance.

“Are you angry with me or Tucker, Shane?”

He shook his head and said nothing, but the hands that were keeping us apart were losing their pressure.  “Did you fuck him?”  His heart sped up.  Was he afraid of my answer?

I bit my lower lip and smiled.  “Yeah, right in the hallway to the bathroom.  I just let him have me against the wall.”

His heart stopped, and then it started wildly drumming under my hands.  Beads of sweat formed on his forehead.  This can’t be right.  He can’t care about me.

He pushed against my hand, eyes desperate to get away from me.  I almost let him pass, but I slammed my arms into his and pushed my lips to his ears.

“Is that what you think of me?  Is that what you need to hear?  That I’m like all the other girls?  Tell me, Shane,” I whispered, pulling my head back.

We stood inches apart, breathing each other in.  My whole body was on fire.

Glancing down at my lips, he gave me a small smile.  His hand traced the contours of my jaw and down my neck; I shivered under his touch.

“No.  I want you to tell me why you have a pair of broken angel wings on your shoulder. I want you to tell me why you cut your wrists and I want to know why and how you play and sing the way you do, but most of all I want you to tell me what I need to do to be a good enough man for you.”

I stepped back immediately, not expecting any of what he said.  I grabbed one of the remaining shots and gulped it down, loving the burn.  “Shane...” My mouth opened to say the words, but I couldn’t form a complete thought.  “I don’t want to be just another one of your girls.  I have other...things, too many things in my life.”  Why couldn’t I just tell him I was with someone else?  Because that would be a lie, I was alone, searching for someone else.  “I really just need a friend right now.”

“Hey!”  Ethan’s voice called from behind us.  “You guys about ready?” he asked, coming over to stand next to us.  Brayden followed.  They took the last two shots and drank them.  “Next time, we do them together,” Ethan said holding up the glass.  “That will be how we start each show with Grace.”

I laughed.  “Sounds good to me.  Shall we amaze them?” I said, looking out into the crowd.

Shane smiled down at me.  “Grace, trust me, they were amazed just by you walking in.”

I shook my head giggling and I walked to pick up my guitar, but not before I overhead Ethan say, “Shane, you break that girl’s heart and I swear I’ll rip yours out.  She’s off limits.”

“Dude, I don’t know what the hell is happening to me, but trust me, right now we’re just friends,” was his reply.

The manager of the bar, Kelvin, was standing in front of us at the microphone as we walked out.  His voiced echoed, “...new guitarist we’ve all been dying to see, and gentlemen, if any of your clothes make it up here, I’ll personally kick your sorry asses outta here!  Here’s Mad World!”

The crowd roared when we were all visible. I ducked my head and laughed as a hot pink lacy bra sailed onto the stage.  I plucked it off the floor and flung it at Shane, “I believe this is for you?” I teased into my mic.  Howls erupted and Shane wore his sexy woman-eating smile. He tucked the bra into his jeans pocket, letting it hang down his leg.

“Hey, everybody!” Shane addressed the crowd.  “I’d like to introduce you to the gorgeous Grace Taylor on guitar!”  I never heard so many catcalls in my life.

Shane’s perfect lips stretched across his face and when he nodded to me, something danced behind his eyes.  I locked eyes with him. Tilting my head, I took the cue and my hands started flying all over my guitar.  The crowd detonated into shrieks and screams.  Shane joined in and our harmony made us both breathless.  We played as one, staring at each other, neither one of us looking away. The crowd was somewhere in the distance, but we were in a place all our own.  If we weren’t careful, the fire in our eyes would cause an inferno, so I laughed and looked away.  We matched each other’s intensity. It overwhelmed my body and made me ache; this friendship would kill me. Right at that very minute, I wanted to die a thousand deaths for it.  Truth be told, I hadn’t felt this alive in years.  My fingers pulsated along the strings and then my voice burst out in song, alongside Shane.  It was more intoxicating than any drink or drug.  It burned through my veins and blazed into my heart, giving it a reason to beat.  Rapture enveloped my body and soul.

We performed all the Mad World songs we practiced until Shane put his hand on the small of my back and whispered into his mic, “Let’s introduce them to Janis.”

Something in the tone of his whisper made my knees weak.  I could almost picture Janis by my side with her haunting laugh.  Come on, she called to me.

I slid up against him, our backs touching and his body quivered in tune with mine.  Leaning my head against his shoulder, my hair washing over him, our eyes latched on to each other’s.  Changing her words, I sung to him.

Oh, Come on, Come on, Come on, Come on!

Don't I make you feel, Shane, like you are the only man,

And don't I give you nearly everything that I possibly can?

Baby, you know I do!

All the time I tell myself that I, well I think I've had enough of you, Shane,

But I'm gonna show you that a woman like me can be tough.

I want you to come on, and just take it,

Take another little piece of my heart now, baby,

I watched as my words showered over his body; he sang back to me, eyes blazing.

The set ended in a riot of noise and applause.  Shane bounced off the stage, but instead of emerging himself in an army of girls, he turned and reached both his hands out for me jump down.  Without a second of hesitation or a thought in my head, I dove into his arms.  His strong arms caught me, cradling me like a baby and kissed me on the cheek.  The lines of friendship completely blurred out of focus as I scanned his flawless face.  What am I doing?  Is one night worth it?  Not in any lifetime.

“That was...intense.  I think I need a drink,” I breathed.

“Yeah, well, I need another ice cold shower.  Tequila?” he asked.

I glided out of his embrace and nodded vigorously.  I gave him a little friendly jab in the arm, “I’m sure in a few minutes any one of these girls will cure you of your need for a cold shower,” I teased.  I needed him to walk away and go find some meaningless one-night stand so I could remember what kind of man Shane really was.

He didn’t respond to my statement, only tightened his smile and escorted me through the screaming crowd to the bar.  Lea was the first to meet us there and she hugged me tightly, lifting me off the ground.  “Oh. My. God!  You guys rocked!”  She held me closer and whispered in my ear, “Was that as hot as it looked?”

I leaned my head back, bit my lip and nodded a yes.  We fell over each other giggling.

Conner grabbed me up next in a bear hug. He reminded me so much of Jacob.  “Thanks for helping my friends out.”

Then after that, everyone just started hugging everyone.  Brayden hugged me awkwardly around the neck like I had a contagious disease, Ethan hugged me and swung me around like a five year old, and Alex desperately tried to grab me by the waist with his casts.  I playfully shoved him in the chest, telling him I was afraid he’d hurt himself by hugging me and he placed a kiss on my cheek.  “Thanks for taking my place, Grace.  I can’t wait to take these things off and play beside you!” he said holding up his casts.

“Yeah, well just don’t go and get yourself arrested again.  What’s going on with that, anyway?”

His face turned red.  “Yeah, I know I’m an idiot.  I shouldn’t have gotten involved, but he roughs her up, Grace. You’re not supposed to hurt girls like that, you know.”

I nodded my head at him.

“My court date is in three months, they released me on my own recognizance.  I’m sure everything will be fine.  Tucker and his father are pretty slick lawyers. His dad spun a great story about me coming to her rescue.  Which is sorta true, it was just a day or two after the jerk beat up Cara.”

Behind the bar, Ryan lined up the shot glasses and set out salt, lemons and limes.  An onslaught of beautiful girls surrounded us, and our conversation ended when Alex noticed them.  Tucker and his work buddies also walked over to take advantage of the crowd of ladies that was forming.

With the swam of busty bimbos bombarding us, I felt claustrophobic.  Lea seemed to feel it too and she yanked Conner and me out of the middle of the crush of bodies. She elbowed me hard in the ribs and pointed to the far end of the bar.  Shane.

He stood alone, leaning his elbows back against the bar.  A bottle of tequila stood beside him with a single shot glass.  His hair was tousled, messy and incredibly sexy.  His dark tee shirt was tight and a tad raised from the way he was leaning.  A perfectly toned stomach peeked out.  He looked like a Greek god.  A Greek god whose eyes were glued on me.

A dark haired girl slithered up to him and brushed a piece of hair from his forehead, blocking his view of me.  They spoke for a few seconds and I watched his head shake and the girl walked away.  My guess was that she was ugly, but when she turned around to walk off, I saw that she wasn’t.  Another girl followed in her wake, a platinum blonde this time.  She also walked away with a rejected look on her face.

Lea gripped my arm and nodded towards Shane, “What do you think that’s about?”

I shrugged and looked to Conner for an answer.

Conner’s eyes squinted.  “Maybe he realizes that he wouldn’t be allowed to take someone back to your apartment, since that’s where he says we’re staying until that nut is caught.”  Now, that made sense.

Lea eyed me.  “Nah, I don’t think that’s it at all.  I think he’s got it bad for his new guitarist.  Did you see them up there, Conner?”

“No way,” I said.  “I like Conner’s explanation much more than yours.  It’s much safer for everyone involved!”

The three of us walked over to him.  He reached over the bar and pulled up three more shot glasses.  He slid them over the bar to us and reached over the bar again for the salt shaker and a handful of limes on a napkin.

The four of us each salted the back of our hands, took a shot and popped a lime in our mouths.  Lea pinched my waist and patted me on the shoulder.  She pushed Conner away from us and started a private conversation with him in whispers.  Giggling to each other, they walked off a bit down the bar to be more alone.

I knew exactly what she was up to; she wanted me to be alone with Shane.  Nice best friend, throwing me to the sharks.

Shane poured me another shot and gently took hold of my hand.  He stuck his pinky into my shot glass, slid his wet finger over the back of my hand, and then salted it.  I watched his hands on mine.  This is going to go from bad to holy crap in a minute.  My eyes rose to meet his.  I licked the back of my hand and tilted back my drink.