Groupie/Rock Star Bundle (13 page)

As their album was due to release in
the summer, it was a great way to boost sales and get their name
out there.

Iris had earned significant favor at her firm
for the success she had with DIB, and as such already had a full
workload. This included a European actor who had just hit it big in
the US with a major movie role and cable TV series, which left her
unable to take off and preside over the band’s needs while they
were in Vegas.

She begged me to go as a personal assistant,
and Jasper seemed perfectly willing to pawn off those duties to an
underling who took maybe four figures less than anyone else in New
York.

It was still four figures more than I would
have been making anywhere else, and traveling to Vegas meant I
could score some travel articles as well. I didn’t get out there
nearly enough, and it was a resource that had always been good to
me.

Over the past few months Vanni and I
had fallen into a comfortable relationship. He called me at least
once every week with updates on what gigs they booked and where he
was scheduled to appear, but he kept the conversation light and
friendly with no sexual overtones in respect of the decision I made
in New York.

He didn’t talk about Lourdes unless asked.
However with her being cast in a major action film thanks to her
appearance in the video I got the not-so-distinct pleasure of
chatting with her on a regular basis as well.

She sold the love story way more than Vanni
seemed willing to, but it stung a lot less knowing that it was all
malarkey. She seemed to sense the casual dismissal on my part for
all her flowery details, even though I usually printed her comments
verbatim on the website and in her press releases. This kept our
relationship cordial but cool.

I had no illusions about my relationship with
her. I knew I was just one more customer to sell her story to, and
she was no doubt comforted by the fact I was not a threat to her
reputation or her relationship.

I wasn’t especially excited that
she’d be in Vegas with the band, doing a convention of some sort
for lingerie models. Nor, honestly, was I looking forward to
spending time with Jasper and Athena for that matter, who were
going to be there for Athena’s debut at one of the
casinos.

But the money was good, the
possibilities for more were endless and I got to hang out with my
friends in the band. Truthfully that was what they felt like now.
They were no longer some guys in a band I’d listen to, they were
friends I could email or text or even call on the phone.

Felix especially had become my email and chat
buddy, who could be counted upon to send me funny photos and news
articles at least once a week with no other purpose than to make me
laugh.

Iain was more standoffish, allowing Alana to
manage most of our friendship. I felt it was shrewd on his part to
avoid any kind of misunderstanding between two female friends. He’d
obviously been burned before, and respected Alana too much to add
any kind of weird competitive overtones to the
relationship.

Yael was standoffish as well, but there were
nights when he’d call in the middle of the night when he was
working through lyrics and wanted my input as a writer. We’d soon
get off on other topics, such as politics, and stay on the phone
until dawn.

So my association with DIB was no longer based
solely on Vanni. As such as I was so deeply entrenched in their
lives and invested in their successes that I really had no choice
but to fly to Vegas in the hot desert heat and play Girl Friday for
an entire weekend.

I’d be lying if I said that my stomach wasn’t
in a knot thinking of spending time with Vanni, especially now that
the rules had been established. He hadn’t necessarily stopped
wanting me as much as he wanted to protect me from getting
hurt.

This endeared him to me even when I knew that I
should keep my focus on the fact we couldn’t be together. I
couldn’t afford to entertain any slight possibility he may still
think about it even a little.

Still, when I heard “my” song, which
was now playing everywhere, it was hard not to romanticize him to
some degree. His voice was smooth like silk as it flowed between
each note, like fingers flowing through my hair and sending all
those delicious little tingles down each and every inch of my skin.
That alone would have been enough to fall in love with it. But for
me it was more intimate. It was a secret love letter that only I
knew the real story behind, because I was the true recipient. It
was a secret only we shared – and that made it all the more
priceless.

The closer it came to our weekend in Vegas I
could only imagine what seeing him sing that song to me was going
to do to my resolve to stay uninvolved.

I wished that Jacob could have gone
but he had to hold down the fort while Jasper was away. He was more
than an assistant, and I often chided he needed to ask for a raise.
He countered and said I needed to ask for money, period.

It was Jacob I could bounce my
feelings off of whenever I had a weak moment, remembering how good
it was when I was with Vanni.

He’d remind me that it was really good until it
wasn’t, and it was the “wasn’t” part that made it a bad
idea.

But he was a red-blooded male with a throng of
admirers that filled his social calendar on a weekly and monthly
basis. He understood the temptation to give in to wild abandon, and
often joked I should just sleep with Vanni and get it over with.
“Solve the mystery. Get the monkey off your back. Then you can move
on to someone else. I hear Bon Jovi is coming to town next
week.”

It was just encouraging enough that
I very nearly almost purchased another corset for the trip. It was
Vegas, I reasoned. It was the perfect city to slut it up. It didn’t
have to mean I was trying to tempt Vanni.

Instead I bought comfy pajamas, something I
could lounge around in during the five minutes alone I’d get in my
hotel each and every night I was there.

If I’m sleeping alone, I might as well be
comfortable.

But my additional duties did warrant some
additions to the wardrobe, and even though Iris wasn’t there to
pick out my clothes like the doting mother hen she was, I think I
did all right. The most aggravating part was it required yet
another suitcase, one I would have to check.

I also had to rent a car for several of the
duties that I had, so that meant it was an entire hour from the
time the plane landed until I was able to leave the airport. With
Vegas traffic it took even longer to get to the hotel that was only
three miles from the airport. By the time I turned the car over to
the valet I was looking forward to the free liquor perk of Las
Vegas casinos.

There were flowers to greet me, two vases this
time, one from Jasper and one from Vanni, whose message was a
cryptic, “Looking forward to seeing you, V.” There was also a big
box on my bed with a big blue bow. Curious, I tore into the
shimmery wrapping paper and within the tissue I found at least
three outfits tucked inside. The card read, “Didn’t think I’d let
you down just because I couldn’t be there, did you? Have fun! Give
our boys a big hug from me. Iris.”

I laughed as I inspected the
goodies. One was a semi-formal dress she no doubt chose for the
after-party. I had brought along the blue and black ensemble from
the last adventure, which would have made her keel over from a
stroke. She probably suspected I would dare to recycle and this was
what prompted her generosity.

Iris was a public relations queen. She knew all
about protecting image.

This dress was almost a flaming blood orange
color, with a yellow and white water color print and sprinkling of
sparkly rhinestones. It had spaghetti straps and a sweetheart
neckline, which dove modestly between the girls. It momentarily
made me regret not buying the corset, because that was the best way
to enhance that neckline and give it its proper due.

The next item in the box: a white
lace corset.

I wondered if she would have sent that little
present to me if she knew exactly how much trouble I could get into
wearing it? It looked almost bridal – she really would die from
shock if I ended up at some drive thru chapel in a drunken stupor.
The thought made me giggle.

There were two casual but hip ensembles
complete with accessories and jewelry, and even a case of makeup
since she knew I would never bring any of my own.

I checked my watch. I had at least
an hour before I had to meet the guys downstairs for a sound check
in the theater where their concert was scheduled, then accompany
them (i.e. chauffeur them) to the radio station for their
interview, promoting the gig.

I figured I had just enough time to transform
myself into the proper PR stand-in that would make Iris proud. I
hopped in the shower and twenty minutes later I stood before the
mirror in black leggings and a cold shoulder top that was deep blue
and made of lightweight, breathable material. It had slits at the
top of each sleeve and an elastic band at the bottom, with silver
studs around the neckline. I looked like I belonged with the band,
or at the very least in Las Vegas. I mentally sent Iris mental
thanks for the confidence boost.

As soon as I gave my name at the box
office I was issued a pass and escorted backstage. I could hear the
band warming up for practice and my heart did a happy little jig
against my ribcage. I saw Vanni before I saw anyone else, but a man
who stood 6’3 and had long dark hair down his back was a little
hard to miss.

Felix saw me first and hopped down off the
stage to run and give me a big hug. The others were quick to
follow, although Vanni hung back to say hello to me last. I got a
brief, full-body hug but nothing that would ever make the others
suspect that anything had ever passed between us.

For some reason I found that especially
painful, as if I couldn’t share a part of myself with my new
friends. But he had an image to uphold and I had made my choices
accordingly. It was hard to be mad at him for very long, especially
when he bestowed upon me that smirk.

The afternoon was filled with all
sorts of activity, and fortunately a significant shortage of
lingerie models.

She had her own thing to do in Vegas
and didn’t need to play devoted girlfriend, and I could tell Vanni
was able to let his hair down – figuratively speaking – in her
absence. We spent about an hour at the radio station and then we
were off to an early lunch at a sushi bar located in the hotel. I
wasn’t especially keen on the idea, even though I loved seafood. I
just generally preferred my meat products cooked.

The guys, particularly Yael and Felix, schooled
me in good sushi so I was able to find several rolls that I fell in
love with in the first bite. I was such a sushi novice I had no
idea some of them were cooked, and those quickly became my
“training wheels” for other sorts of sushi. It was also a very
filling meal considering, and the guys and I spent most of the next
hour chatting and catching up.

Vanni was still rather distant, but cordial,
through the interaction. It was extremely hard to read how he felt
about my being there at all.

Was it over? Had his feelings disappeared the
minute I turned him down?

Jacob didn’t seem to think so when we had
spoken about the trip just days before. He felt that Vanni would
always go after those things, and people, he couldn’t have. “Never
sleep with him,” he advised, “and he’ll love you
forever.”

I wasn’t so sure about that, given he barely
even looked at me, and when he did it was with this unreadable
expression that I immediately sensed was disguising some sort of
discomfort or problem.

Everyone disbanded around 5:00 p.m., to go
change and prepare for the concert.

I knew that the semi-formal dress was the one I
had to wear for the occasion, but with how peculiar Vanni was
acting my enthusiasm to glam it up and be extra sexy had waned.
Still, it’s all about image. So I changed and put on my own mask as
I headed downstairs for the show.

The V.I.P. spots were reserved in the balcony,
which meant I couldn’t get a front-row seat. I sat with the other
executives and high rollers, but Jasper, Athena and Lourdes were
all M.I.A. Instead I chatted with one of the other band’s managers
and the champagne flowed while the four acts performed.

DIB was third in the lineup, and I could tell
immediately how successful they were becoming when the first note
of “Make it Happen” brought the fans on the floor below to their
feet. I sat quietly and observed how the girls in the front row
responded when he sang, “Inside Out” and “Baby, Say My Name.”
Unlike the New York venue these fans wanted intimate access, and
were throwing flowers, clothing and even a few hotel keys on
stage.

They closed with “Wanting Her,” and played the
corresponding video behind the band. Vanni jumped down off the
stage and walked right up to every girl in the front row, singing
each line directly to them. Some he even touched their faces, or
held their hands.

I swallowed the huge lump in my throat. This is
his brand, I reminded myself. It’s still my song. I knew that
everything he did was carefully orchestrated to broaden his fan
base and increase album and concert sales. How many of those girls
were going to run straight to the box office to buy a ticket for
the following night, just because he made them feel like there was
a connection tonight?