Bright
After a heated battle of do's and don'ts with Raleigh I caved and had about forty five minutes to get ready. I lived above The Brew so I had time. By five to seven I rushed down the back steps and stopped short seeing Noah chatting up Raleigh. If I had to be one hundred percent honest with myself I could admit that seeing him accepting of Ral and not bothered by his flamboyance warmed me and softened me to him.
I dressed casual in a long grey cashmere sweater and faded distressed jeans and my new black Prada botties. I would again admit to myself, that yes I did want to look good for this dinner, though I wasn't happy about it.
Noah… oh Noah. It's so obnoxious how hot he is. Seriously, it is unfair to be that kind of man beauty and he totally knew it as did every woman in America. I watch as Noah says something to Raleigh that has him gut laughing, probably at my expense no less. The look on Ral's face says that Noah has the attention of gay boys too.
Unlike me, Noah didn't go change. He was wearing the same clothes as earlier. Camo pants that were worn out perfectly, a grey T shirt and old black Chuck Taylors. He had so many tattoos it would take me a day to decipher but from a distance there was so much going on with his ink he looked like his shirt was long sleeved. Up close though it told a story of good and evil. The way the art was displayed meant there was depth behind it…and didn't that add to his brooding sexiness?
I am pulled from my inner monologue with Ral snapping in my face. "Stop drooling baby, you look ridiculous."
Ugh could he be more of a traitor?
"I hate you." I say and look to Noah. "Ready?"
"Ya know it's not like you're walking the plank Bright. Think you could melt the ice block on your ass so we don’t freeze in the rental car? I'll be pissed if I lose that deposit."
"Oh please. Like you made the reservation for a Prius? I bet some poor girl with bad judgment and a lot of regrets that you call your assistant picked it for you." I smirk at my insult and he laughs.
"George did. That's Tay's assistant. I don’t have one." He looks at me with a mock frown. "I'm just a bad ass bassist with an edge remember? Besides, Chad gets all the attention. You'll see." He opens the passenger door to his ridiculous car and I note the slamming of it once I was seated.
"Ugh! Asshole!" I yell and hear him laugh. I watch as he and Ral talk a minute more but I can't hear anything. I lean over and lay on the horn, making them both jump. Feeling satisfied I sit back with an innocent smile as Noah gets inside.
I watch his every move because I can't not. He starts a car with more sexual appeal than any one person should. Every move he makes is with intent and I equally loathe him and want him.
While stopped at a red light and while I was busy looking at his long talented tattooed fingers that readSURVIVORfrom right to left, he broke the silence. "So I figured some of what we will be discussing is intense and personal, add to that I rarely get privacy I thought we could do dinner on my bus."
I roll my eyes. "How convenient."
"It really is." He says with a smile and I want to punch his perfect mouth.
"Let me be very clear. I will not be fucking you. Tonight or any night for that matter."
He places his hand on his heart in mock suffering. "I'm crushed."
"I bet you are." I say and smile knowing damn well he would not hesitate if I said yes
"I can get pussy anywhere sweetheart. And I do. Your virtue is safe."
"Ewe." I say and I am truly grossed out by that admittance. I have had a lot of sex, sadly I have also had a lot of partners so my being eeeked out by his comment is completely hypocritical of me.
He just laughs and shrugs. "It's true though. I take advantage of that perk. It's something you need to understand too. This whole thing is ridiculous. I don’t like the idea of a sponsor I don’t know on the road with me watching my every move for the next three months anymore than you do."
I could hear the frustration in his voice as he spoke. "So why agree?" I ask and I really do want to know.
"Can I be honest or are you going to keep judging and insulting?" I can see the guy I met in his eyes. The guy who assured me with kindness and had me trusting his word that my tattoo would be perfect. That is the guy that I could spend hours talking to and fight to help.
"Are you going to stop teasing me?" I ask in return, just as serious.
"Probably not. I don’t make excuses for who I am Bright. I'll tease when the moment calls for it and I'll be real when I need to be."
"I accept that." I say with a genuine smile aware I don't have a choice. Relaxing slightly as if we made a silent agreement to be real for the time being he nods. "I accept it without a fight because my band is my family." He stops talking to put in the address of the venue where his bus is at. Part of me is completely floored that I am doing this.
Aaaaaandeven more shocked to learn that yeah, I am gonna do it.
"I know that my definition of family is way skewed, but uh, I thought family supported one another?"
He looks at me with a soft smile. "Why is your definition skewed?"
