Sheet Music - A Rock 'n' Roll Love Story (31 page)

“Hey, lover boy,” Brian called after Michael, a long piece of bacon dangling suggestively from his mouth.

Michael turned around to face his band mates.  “What?”

“Don’t even think of blowing off the party tonight or I’ll personally hunt you down like a dog.  The limo is picking us up here at quarter of six.  It would be nice if we could all head over together as a band.  Know what I’m saying?”

“I hear you,” Michael replied.

Annie was in the bathroom applying the finishing touches to her make-up when Michael answered the knock on their penthouse door.  She figured it was probably Brian or one of the other band members and ignored the interruption.  When her job was completed, she studied her reflection in the mirror.  Her cheeks were still flushed from their afternoon lovemaking and warm to the touch, the thoughts of which, made her knees weak.  Being with Michael felt so right, she couldn’t wipe the smile from her face.  Nor did she want to.  She was so helplessly in love with him, it made her positively glow.

Michael waited on the edge of the bed for Annie to come out of the bathroom, a jewelry box the jeweler had personally delivered to the room was resting in his hands.  When she appeared in the doorway, it took his breath away.  He felt his jaw go slack, as he took in her beauty.

The deep plum-colored dress they had bought earlier was tight and short, displaying her long tapered legs, and narrow waist.  The neckline was just low enough to give the eye a hint of cleavage, without exposing too much.  Charcoal stockings and three-inch heels completed the ensemble.  She looked stunning.

“Well, what do you think?” Annie asked nervously, twirling around quickly for him.

A slow deliberate smile crept across his face.  “I’m thinking we should stay here at the hotel so I can peel that dress off your body.”

Annie placed her hands on her hips.  “Michael,” she sighed.  “I didn’t spend the last hour getting into this dress so that you could immediately take it back off!”

“I know.  I know.  I’m kidding.  Besides, it will give me something to look forward to later,” he teased.

She reached out in an effort to playfully slap him and he grabbed her by the wrist.  “Come here.  I have something for you,” he said, pulling her gently into his lap and handing her the long rectangular jewelry box.

Annie took the package and glanced at his eyes.  “What is this?” she asked quietly.

“Open it and see,” he smiled.

Annie slowly lifted the lid and gasped loudly, her hands instantly began to tremble.  Inside the box was a sparkling diamond necklace with a one and a half carat, pear-shaped stone with three round quarter-carat stones clustered above, white gold setting and a sixteen-inch chain.  Displayed in the center of the box were matching diamond earrings, three-quarter carats each; pear-shaped stones in drop settings.

“Oh, my God!  I can’t believe you…” and then her tears came, as she buried her face into the sanctuary of his neck.

“I didn’t spend eight grand to make you cry!” he joked.  “I just figured you’d need something to wear with the dress.”

“Eight
thousand
dollars? Michael, this is too much.  I can't accept this,” Annie replied, closing the box.

“Sweetheart, I picked these out specially for you.  Please, I
want
you to have them,” he said, nudging the box back at her.

“No one has ever given me anything this nice,” she replied, glancing back at the jewelry, and placing a hand on her chest.  “They’re absolutely beautiful,” she sighed.

“Just like you,” he answered, his voice low and provocative.

She felt his voice vibrate in her chest and raised her eyes up to meet his.  The weight of their gaze felt enormously powerful at that moment, as it pulsed between their bodies.  She could feel his breath, short and heavy, washing over her lips, taunting all the nerve endings in her body.  Her chest began to quickly rise and fall.  Their eyes never broke their connection, as the heat continued to mount.  Then his mouth reached for hers.  She wrapped her fingers tightly around his smooth neck and squeezed, as she succumbed to the passion.  Her entire body began to ache for attention.  Regrettably, she broke their kiss and pressed her face against his cheek, panting softly.

Michael groaned in disappointment that her mouth was suddenly gone from his.  “I swear, you could make me come just by kissing me,” he sighed, with a hint of levity in his statement.

Annie sat back and studied the longing in his face, as her fingers thoughtfully traced the outline of his lips and chin.  Seductively, Michael sucked one of her fingers inside the warmth of his mouth, teasing it with the tip of his tongue.  Again, her breath came in short bursts.  Her eyes reflected the deep and intimate connection they were both feeling.

“Do you think it will always be like this between us?” she sighed breathless, almost unable to speak in a complete sentence.

“No, I suspect it will only intensify as the years pass,” he replied, speaking around the finger that remained in his mouth.

“Do you see us growing old together?” she asked, with a hopeful tone.

He smiled and lightly kissed her fingers.  “Very old.”

Annie returned his smile as her eyes began to mist with emotion.

“I think we better get going before I have to change my pants,” he chuckled.  “Let me put the necklace on for you,” he suggested, removing it from the box.

With the diamonds safely secured around her neck and on her ears, Annie took a minute to admire them in the bedroom mirror.  Michael came up behind her and slid his arm around her slender waist, resting his chin on top of her shoulder.  He pushed her silken hair off the back of her neck and found a soft spot behind her ear to kiss.

Annie spun around to face him.  “Thank you, so much,” she whispered, cautiously touching the jewels with her fingers.  “I love them.”

“More than me?”

“I’m not sure that’s possible,” she laughed.

They met Brian and his wife in the hallway.  The look on both their faces clearly stated the obvious, that Annie was a total knockout.  Barbara noticed the jewelry dangling around Annie’s neck first.

“Wow!  Looks like someone got
extra
lucky today,” she squealed.  “I didn't know you had such good taste, Michael.”

Annie blushed and touched her neck again.  “Yes, he is amazing,” she quietly replied.  Michael squeezed her hand and smiled knowingly at her.

“No, you’re amazing, Annie,” Brian stated sincerely, and kissed her on the cheek.  “And God knows, he doesn’t deserve you, but…”

“All right, enough of the sentiments,” Michael interrupted, stepping into the elevator.

In the limousine, Annie sat beside Michael and across from Brian and his wife.  Even though the elongated vehicle had the seating capacity for twelve, it was still cramped with all five band members and their spouses.  One by one, Michael officially introduced Annie to the few remaining wives she hadn’t yet met.  With every second that passed, the reality of the situation overwhelmed her, and caused her to cling tighter to Michael.

“Are you nervous?” he whispered, kissing her forehead.

She nodded.  “Why?  Aren’t you?”

Michael laughed.  “Hardly.  The mystery of this was lost on me a long time ago.  It’s a job.  A job that I love but, none the less, it’s a job.”

His eyes drifted around the car and settled onto Brian, who was lecherously scanning the length of Annie’s exposed legs.  “Hey, watch your eyes, Lofgren!  You might want to keep it above the shoulders,” he warned.

Brian shamelessly grinned and looked over at his wife.  “What can I say?” he shrugged ambivalently, trying to deflect his wife’s angry glare.  “She’s got gorgeous legs.”

“Oh, and mine aren’t?” Barbara snapped back playfully.

“I didn’t say that,” Brian defended, patting his wife’s thigh.

“Yeah, nice try,” she scolded in mock disgust, as she removed his hand from her leg.

The car came to a stop in front of the FleetCenter.  Slowly, the occupants spilled onto the crowded sidewalk, their eyes disappearing behind dark sunglasses.  Camera flashes illuminated the late afternoon sky, almost at the speed of a strobe light.  Annie concealed her face behind Michael’s arm, as he gently tugged her past the squealing fans.  Brian stopped and signed a few quick autographs, while the others moved into the building.  On another night, Michael might have stayed with Brian.  But, judging by the grip Annie had on his hand, he thought it best to get her inside tonight.

Backstage was a beehive of activity, more so than usual.  It was the end of another long tour, which always brought an extra air of celebration to the event.  That feeling was even greater with this tour, since everyone was feeling the need for a lengthy break, especially Michael.  With Annie back by his side, all he wanted to do was drop into obscurity and surround himself with nothing but her.

Much to Brian’s disapproval, Michael passed on the usual meet ‘n’ greet pre-concert party.  He didn’t want to leave Annie alone and it certainly wasn’t the place to bring a girlfriend.  He found his dressing room and began to warm up on a few different guitars while Annie watched.  When it was time to go on stage, Annie took her place behind the curtain with the other wives.

A dozen or more directors chairs were set up discretely, stage right.  The wives quickly filled the first row.  Annie sat on the end beside a heavy velvet curtain and closest to Michael’s array of guitars; all neatly lined up and at the ready.  His guitar technician kept a careful vigil of the instruments.

Suddenly the house lights went black and the volume from the audience rocketed toward a fevered pitch.  The stage director began to bark out orders to a variety of back stage personnel, as Thrust casually took their traditional places on stage.  Michael’s guitar technician handed him the guitar to be used for the first song and stepped away.  As the drums began to beat the heart-stopping intro into their first set of songs, Michael drifted back toward Annie for one last kiss.

“Rock their worlds, baby,” she yelled into his ear over the noise.

Michael cast a sly grin at her and sauntered toward his designated spot, quickly ripping into his first blistering riff.  He played as if he were on fire, practically melting the strings from each of his prized instruments.  Annie could not have been more proud, and viewing it all from the side of the stage made it even more surreal.

The first encore came two hours into the show.  Michael was off the stage before the rest of the band, handing his smoking guitar to his technician as he passed.  Annie jumped from her chair and met him.

“You took my breath away,” she congratulated him, as he slid his arms around her and lifted her off the floor.

He kissed her deeply and ran a towel over his face and neck.  Then gulped down a half a bottle of water before invading Annie’s mouth for a second time. The rest of the band had already taken their places back on stage, while Michael continued to grope Annie behind the curtain.

Brian casually engaged the audience with his typical perverse sense of humor as he waited for everyone to ready themselves.  He was just about to kick it back into gear, when he realized Michael still remained off stage, heavily entwined with Annie.  Brian looked away and shook his head, laughing into the microphone.

“You know, on another night, I might let this piss me off,” Brian teased the audience.  Then he placed a hand over his eyes for a shield from the spotlight and squinted down into the front row of fans.  “Hmmm, I bet you people thought you had the best seats in the house tonight, didn’t you?”

A roar erupted from the audience and Brian laughed heartily.  “Well, my friends,
I
have the best seat in the house tonight because the real show is happening right now behind that very curtain!”  Brian swaggered across the stage and pointed in the direction of Annie and Michael.  “Hey lover boy,” he hollered to Michael.  “Get your horny ass out here and join the rest of the party.”

It took a minute for the statement to register in Michael’s brain.  Then abruptly, he pulled away from Annie and grabbed the guitar from his technician’s hand.  “Sorry, babe, I’ll be right back,” he smiled.

When his image appeared back on stage, the crowd went into a cheering frenzy.  Michael shamelessly waved at the mass of bodies before him, ignoring Brian’s irritated stance.

“Well, we hate to bother you, but we do have a show to finish,” Brian chuckled.

Michael leaned into his microphone.  “That’s all right. I can finish that later,” he answered, laughing at his own joke.

Behind the curtain, Annie was thankful for the darkness that hid her flushed red face.  But inside, her heart danced with joy.

“He’s a new man because of you,” Barbara said into Annie’s ear.  “This is the best he’s played in months.”

Brian approached Michael and draped a sweaty arm around his friend’s shoulder.  “Maybe you’d like to introduce the object of your distraction to everyone,” he suggested.

Michael shook his head and smiled.  “I don’t think she’d appreciate that.”

The crowd went crazy in their seats.  Michael glanced toward Annie, where she was nervously shaking her head.  Playfully, he shrugged his shoulders.

“Yes, I’m sorry, ladies.  But Michael is officially off the market again and this looks pretty fucking serious.  Who knows, maybe he’ll make it permanent!”

Michael roared with laughter and ran his guitar pick sexily over the strings.

“Come on, Mike.  Bring her on out,” Brian urged.  “Do it so we can get on with the show!”

Michael’s eyes darted back to Annie.  She had stepped further off into the darkened area behind the curtain, appearing to hide.  He contemplated Brian’s request in his head while the crowd noise grew louder.  Finally, he turned and walked toward Annie, pushing his guitar behind his back.  The audience rose to their feet and began chanting and stomping their feet.

“Come on, Annie.  They won’t bite,” Brian chuckled.

“Sorry, babe,” Michael apologized as he embraced her.  Then he kissed her on the lips.  “Just come out quick and get it over with. You know Brian won’t let this go now until you do.”