“Okay so maybe he’s not a stalker and maybe it’s all a coincidence like you say. But do me a favor, talk to the other teachers at school on Monday.”
It was an easy favor to agree to, especially since I’d already decided to do it. I was glad she didn’t ask me to talk to Flame because I would’ve said no. No sense in worrying anyone or pissing him off ‘til I knew for sure. Right?
Finally the rest of the group showed up, having ditched the TV crews and any lingering fans.
“Sorry I lost you babe. That was fuckin’ whacked.”
“Yeah you could say that,” I said, the sarcasm heavy in my voice.
Cyn shook her head. “I can’t get used to this, it’s crazy, and it’s gotten so much worse since we left on tour.”
“It was bound to happen,” Joe said as he joined the group. “You are getting bigger and bigger, wait until the next album comes out.”
“Shit, we won’t be able to go anywhere,” Rage fumed.
“Hey it’s the price of fame. Would you rather be back in Jack and Sally’s garage?” Chaos asked.
No one said anything after that, but after the mob in the lobby nobody felt like going out so we picked one of the restaurants in the Waldorf. The food was great, but the bill had to be outrageous.
“This is so expensive.”
“Don’t worry about it. It’s all a write off anyway according to Joe.”
“Baby, if you keep spending it won’t matter.”
Flame laughed. “It’s all taken care of. Joe knows what he’s doing and you don’t have to worry. We have our own accountsand investments and there’s more money than any of us know what to do with right now.””
I nodded, it really wasn’t the best place to have this discussion, but I didn’t like him spending tons of money on me. My grandmother was middle class, and I didn’t lack for anything, but I didn’t need a lot either. She instilled in me the ‘just because you can buy it doesn’t mean you should’ mentality. I gave in sometimes, especially with shoes, my secret addiction, or maybe not so secret if you looked in my closet.
“I’ll be leaving for Sunshine’s after dinner, but I called a realtor to arrange to show you apartments tomorrow. I’ll see what I can do about finding some land near Marlville too,” Joe announced.
Living in New Jersey would make getting to work a lot more difficult for both of us. I never even thought about any of this and I should have until earlier. Maybe I shouldn’t have sublet my apartment then we could have moved in there, although it was small, Flame probably would have hated it.
The steak in front of me didn’t look as appetizing anymore, and I grabbed my wineglass instead. The deep red wine looked like blood, but it was smooth going down my throat, leaving a warm trail to my stomach. I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast and I could already feel the effects.
“Aren’t you hungry?”
“Not really.”
Flame frowned. “If you don’t eat you won’t have any energy for later,” he said as he waggled his brows. I laughed, who wouldn’t. It was such a Groucho thing all he was missing was the cigar.
“Fine, I’ll try.”
“Good girl.” That earned him an elbow to the side, he groaned and I felt a little better then. He wasn’t the boss of me, maybe I would have to get out some more surprises from the goody bag later. All of a sudden, I felt a lot better and I was able to eat some of the steak, baked potato and broccoli.
Dinner was actually kind of fun. They all shared stories of the tour and Candy and Sweets’ many shopping trips. Apparently they couldn’t stop anywhere without buying stuff. Chaos teased they were going to need a house just for all the shit they bought.
“What was your favorite place,” Teresa asked, always the journalist.
Wrath winked at her. “Off the record or are you doing another piece on us.”
We all laughed, it wasn’t that long ago she’d written an article on the band. It was a huge mess for a while but worked out in the end. I was glad too, having met Wrath the same night as Flame, I was surprised at how much less of a jerk he was now. The guys all should thank Teresa for that.
“I was just curious, and no I’m not writing about you…yet.”
Rage and Fury groaned, they were all for flying under the radar, which was pretty hard when you’re a rock star. I wondered if they realized when they decided to start the band how it would be if they made it big. I knew a lot of Fury’s story from Flame but not Rage’s. He kept it pretty quiet.
One of the bellman came to tell Joe his car was ready and we said goodbye. He told Chaos he’d let him know when he found out anything about the land and the recording schedule. Teresa reminded him to say hi to Sunshine for her. I wondered if her momand Joe dating was kind of weird for her. I’d have to remember to ask her one of these days.
