One Uber ride,two shows, and three drinks later, I was feeling more relaxed than I had in a long time. I’d totally forgotten about my earlier mistakes and was ready to make fresh, new ones. Finn had me all worked up from earlier, and now I was on the prowl. Unfortunately, the gene pool I had to choose from was not terribly deep. Most of the males in the vicinity were stumbling around under the influence of Molly, the party drug of choice at this festival. The others seemed precariously committed to the women they’d pinpointed as easy marks. Beautiful people were plentiful. This music festival wastheplace to see and be seen, so naturally it brought out a certain caliber and class of people… and by class, I meant the upper. Money was the common thread that ran rampant through the fairgrounds. Sure, there were the hardcore music lovers who’d had to scrape together the exorbitant entry fees, but they appeared to be few and farbetween.
It made me wonder about Finn. He didn’t appear privileged, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t. Still, what was he doing coming to a three-day festival by himself? Was he just here to partake in the spoils of a weekend filled with sex, drugs, and rock ’n roll? God, I hoped not. It was funny that I didn’t know a thing about him, yet I already held him to a higherstandard.
After I’d downed the second drink, I found it so much easier to justify my earlier actions. Sure, Finn was a stranger, but he was also a fellow citizen in need. What kind of person would I be if I’d just left him to dehydrate on the side of the road? The fact that I was affected by his charming smile and his increasingly endearing curly hair had nothing to do with it… no, I was simply fulfilling my civic duty. Nothing more.Uh huh, right. I could justify my actions all day long, but it didn’t erase the fact that I was scanning the crowds in desperate search of his face, or that during one of the shows, I’d actually twirled. Twirled, as in spun around in a carefree display ofhappiness!
I could lie and say it was the alcohol that was behind my sudden Mary Poppins moment, but I had to give credit where it was due. The chance meeting with Finn had changed my mood. I hadn’t even realized I’d been in a bad one until that strange, anxious feeling got all caught up in my chest. Elation swept me up, and I morphed into a giddy state. The smile I was carrying was a thing of beauty. I couldn’t remember the last time I felt solight.
I had to face the facts: as implausible as it seemed, I’d developed a crush on the parking lot mechanic. I’d had them before – crushes, that is, not mechanics – but that was way back when I was a wide-eyed teenager who still believed in The One. And in that adolescent dream world, my ideal guy had looked and acted nothing like Finn. And, yet, that fact only heightened my attraction. Maybe I was itching for something different… something that made me feel more thanjustblah.
Knowing that at some point Finn and I would cross paths behind the scenes at some concert kept my senses on high alert. I took out my phone for the hundredth time. Why hadn’t I just given him my number? It was too much pressure having his at my fingertip. If I called him, it would imply certain things. That I was interested. That I was available. That I was whipped on him. No. That would make me too vulnerable, and I never played thehelplesscard.
Casey, Kenzie, and I were backstage during the performance of a band they’d both raved about. I watched as they danced around wild and free, but even with my newfound joy, I still couldn’t forgive bad music. These guys were like Jake on musical steroids. The singer’s voice was so high-pitched at times that my eyes actually watered. I could only assume that Casey and Kenzie were either musically illiterate or that they were just too tipsy to care. Tapping my foot to the beat was as much as I was willing to give this untalentedbunch.
After the concert, the musicians exited the stage, and the lead singer headed in our direction. His piercing stare fell over the three of us, and a predatory grin took over his exhausted face. I recognized him as the lead singer by the spiked black hair and charcoal guyliner, which was currently smeared down his face. Nothing about him interested me, but I could certainly see how his fans would find himattractive.
“Ladies.” He dipped his head in a sexy way. “Did you enjoy the show?” A steady stream of sweat poured out from his hairline, and all I could think was,Finn does ‘sweaty’ so muchbetter.
Both Kenzie and Casey chattered and gushed over each other to be the one who offered the most praise, which only served to stroke the rocker’s ego. Unimpressed, I checked my phoneoncemore.
“And whataboutyou?”
I looked up to see him addressing me with that cocky smile of his. The alcohol made me more honest than I would have liked. “Itwas…loud.”
“Loud?” He smirked, nodding his head. “That’s thepoint.”
“Oh, well, in that case, it wasawesome.”
The expression that transformed his flirtatious grin was one of annoyance and surprise. Seriously? Did no one ever give this guy honestfeedback?
“You’re a sass queen.” He nodded. “Okay, I canappreciatethat.”
His tongue actually flicked in my direction. I suppressed the overwhelming urge to vomitonhim.
“You three wanna party? Meet the guys? I promise it will be the time of yourlives.”
Before the other two could go on a pages-long explanation as to why they couldn’t party with these particular rock stars, I decided to nip it in the bud right then and there. “She’s engaged to Jake McKallister, and she’s dating his brother. I guarantee… you won’tmeasureup.”
The rocker looked on in shock, his mouth actually gaping open, as I grabbed Casey and Kenzie and steered them away from thehorndog.
“Hey!” the sweaty guy called out. “Who areyou,then?”
I turned and flashed him what I hoped was my sassiest smile beforewalkingaway.
“You’re such a tease,” Kenzie whispered, as we hurried out ofthere.
“Me? You were the ones stroking his dick with all yourgushing.”
“We were just being friendly,” she argued. “How were we to know he was going to turn itdirty?”
“Um…let’s see… because he’s a rock star? That’s whattheydo.”
“Jake’s not like that,” Casey said, in defense of her soon-to-behusband.
“Not now. But before he met you, Jake was no saint. And Kyle, good god, he was a pimp short of man-whore.”
“Wow, way to lighten the mood,” Casey said, grinning. “Was there a point to slut-shamingourmen?”
“Not really,” I admitted, smiling. “But itfeltgood.”
