Trapped Under Ice (21 page)

“I love it. When are you going to use it?”

“Tonight,” Roger said.

“What?” Chad and Beth said in unison.

Roger sauntered to the edge of the stage and continued talking with Stan as if they weren’t there.

“It gives the song a whole new angle.”

“I agree. A whole new energy. It’s hot. She’s hot. What label do you sing with, hon?”

“Me?” Beth returned, stunned.

Chad smiled. “How long have you been thinking about this?” he asked Roger.

“Since St. Louis. What do you think?”

“Well I think it’s great, but...”

“And what about you, Beth? What would you think about doing this for real?”

“What do you mean?”

“Performing it live. Tonight, at the concert.”

She laughed. When Roger didn’t join in, she queried, “You’re kidding, right?”

“I’m dead serious.”

She looked at Chad. “Were you in on this?”

He lifted up his hands to express his innocence. “I swear I had nothing to do with it.”

“Roger. Be serious. Do you know how many people are going to be in this auditorium tonight?”

“A little under twenty thousand.”

“Exactly. Twenty-thousand people who came to hear Trapped Under Ice, not Beth Donovan, lunch lady.”

“Lunch lady?” Stan repeated in surprise.

Roger ignored him. “Twenty-thousand people who came to be entertained, and Stan here says the three of us are very entertaining, right, Stan?”

“Very.”

Beth laughed again. “You’re crazy. I’ve never even performed before.”

“What about the concert at the Old Cathedral in St. Louis?”

“A choir Christmas concert, that’s hardly performing.”

“It’s not? Didn’t you have a solo?”

“Yes. And I was terrified. And it was in front of…what…a hundred people at best?” She glanced at Chad for confirmation, but Roger rolled on.

“Well, I guess I was wrong about you,” he said with an air of disappointment. He moved to put away his guitar. “When I met you backstage in St. Louis, I thought you were one gutsy lady.”

Chad chuckled. “Man, you’re good!”

“That’s different.”

“It’s all about facing your fears head on.”

Roger had struck a chord. Beth had thought about this the whole way back from the winery. If she was going to try to make a go of things with Chad, she was going to have to let go of her fears. She hesitated.

Sensing a weakness, Roger struck. “Come on, Beth. You know this would be a dream come true. You can’t pass this up. Besides, Chad and I will be right here. You’ll just be singing to us like you did a few minutes ago.”

“Only there will be about twenty thousand other people here.”

He disregarded her remark. “It’ll be fun. You know you want to. Besides, Chad has promised certain sexual favors if you do.”

Chad took his cue and nodded his head vigorously with a silly grin.

“You two are a pair of morons, you know?”

“We know,” they answered simultaneously.

Roger turned serious. “What do you say?”

Beth thought for a minute. She looked up and asked wickedly, “What sort of sexual favors?” They all laughed. “All right,” she agreed before Roger could argue further, “I’m in.”

Everyone whooped. Chad grabbed her and gave her a kiss. She pulled away. “But you damn well better have a shot for me before I go on stage.”

“No problem,” Roger countered. “We always have a shot before we go on stage.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Beth stood at the bottom of a ramp leading up to the stage. Her whole body was shaking, and she thought there was a strong possibility she was going to throw up. She could hear the thunderous applause of the audience, a strange wave of noise, but she had not been able to enjoy the band’s playing at all.

As they wound up the first set, she could hear Chad say, “We’re going to take about a one-minute break, so make-out with your boyfriend or girlfriend or do whatever comes naturally, within legal limits. We’ll be right back.” The four came down the ramp together, accepting cold beers and waters from people in the wings.

“You ready, Beth?”

She paced at the end of the ramp, dressed in a black camisole and black silk shirt. She wore jeans and little boots Roger called her “rock and roll boots.”

“I don’t think that shot was such a good idea. I think I’m going to be sick.”

“I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be the first time that happened at a rock concert,” Roger remarked with a grin. She stared at him darkly. He turned to Chad. “She’s all yours, man. I think I’ve done all I can.”

“Yeah, thanks,” he retorted. He grabbed Beth by the shoulders. “Babe, it’s not too late to back out if you want to. You don’t have to do this.”

Roger looked at her with raised eyebrows. She took in all the expectant faces around her, and then stared back at Roger. “No. I’ll do it.”

Roger’s face relaxed. “Good.” They all got ready to go back on stage.

Chad took her hand and leaned in to say, “If you get scared, just look at me.”

She smiled at him, the words giving her some comfort. Roger grabbed her other hand.

She spoke through gritted teeth. “I’ll get you for this.”

“I’m counting on it,” he responded out of the corner of his mouth without looking at her.

They entered the stage with cameras popping in their faces and the applause actually sending out waves of vibration. The heat from the lights and pyros was unrepentantly intense. Beth peered out and the people looked like a sea, like one huge, undulating entity. She was glad for the shot. She was feeling a little fuzzy, but powerful, and she realized she just might be able to do this.

“Thank you,” Chad shouted into the microphone. “We’re going to do a little number for you,” he continued slowly, adjusting his guitar into a comfortable position, “called ‘I Just Had to Have You Last Night.’”

The monster that was the crowd roared, and she worried all those people who loved to hear Chad and Roger sing this might be a little miffed she was singing. But before her thoughts could get much further, Roger was singing to her. Gazing into his face for courage, she belted out her lines like a pro, draping her arm over him flirtatiously. He was eating it up. When Chad started his lines, she sauntered over to him and did the same thing. When they reached the chorus, they all faced the audience, and the applause was deafening. They were actually enjoying this, she thought.

Whether from the alcohol or the lights or her own nervousness, all of a sudden she was nauseatingly hot. Roger sang his next lines, and she dramatically fanned herself as if his words turned her on, but with Chad’s lines she actually peeled off her blouse, whipping the crowd into a frenzy. As planned, with each man’s lines they got closer and closer to her until, with the last phrases, she was holding them apart with her hands, and then the lights went down. It came off beautifully. She bent down and scooped her shirt up off the stage, and Roger covered his microphone with one hand.

“I told you, you could do it.” He gave her a happy kiss. The audience cheered.

“Hey, where’s mine?” Chad protested into his microphone. Beth strolled toward him. When she reached the singer, he grabbed her, swung her around, and dipped her, kissing her long and passionately, if not a bit awkwardly with a guitar between them.

“Now, wait a minute,” Roger complained into his mike. Then added, “How come the lead singer always gets the girls?”

Beth came up laughing and hustled off stage, pleased with herself and relieved it was over.

“Beth Donovan,” Chad announced to the crowd; they responded with even louder cheering.

At the bottom of the ramp she was met by Cheri and Michelle. “Way to go girl!” they hollered, giving her high-fives.

“Here. We have one of these for you,” Michelle added, handing her a second shot of tequila.

She downed it without a second’s hesitation. “Smooth,” she uttered with a strained voice. They all laughed. The music started so the conversation ended. Beth sat and watched Chad for the rest of the show, remembering what drew her to the singer in the first place. He sang with a passion, and energy, and intensity, which completely turned her on. When the show was finished and Chad came backstage, she grabbed him, pressing her lips to his with a newfound hunger.

She gazed at him, her eyes dancing. “I am so incredibly turned on right now.”

“
Ummm…someone’s had some more tequila.”

“Just one more, and it wore off a while ago.”

“Okay, if you say so.” He held her tight, rubbing her back at the same time. The rock star kissed her again.

Roger, who had just come up for air himself after kissing Michelle, hollered, “
Ahh, get a room, you two.”

“Sounds like a good idea,” Chad purred.

***
         

Walking the gauntlet to the buses wasn’t quite as intense this time, though Chad noticed there seemed to be a lot more men present than usual. Had they come to see Beth? The idea didn’t thrill him.

When the noise outside was shut behind the door to the bus, he asked, “Do you want another drink?”

“No. I’m fine,” Beth hummed seductively.

“Me, too.” Kissing her, he led her through the kitchen and into the bedroom, closing the door behind them. He stood facing her. Her back was toward the door and he rubbed her shoulders. “Taking off your blouse”—he closed his eyes for a minute—“was a nice touch.”

“Oh, that wasn’t part of the act, at first. I was just too damned hot.”

“I’ll say.” He jerked open her blouse, straining the buttons, and pulled it down to expose her shoulders. He began kissing her neck and shoulders, the combination of his tongue and facial hair again sending her into orbit. He finished unbuttoning the blouse and let it drop to the floor. He ran his hands over smooth shoulders and up and down her arms, feasting on the way her breasts looked in the low-cut camisole. Suddenly, he turned his little songstress around and pressed her against the door.

She leaned her cheek against the cool wood, moaning in pleasure as his hands ran across her breasts and down to her waist. He unbuckled her belt and slid her jeans and panties off. Starting where he left the jeans on the floor, he worked his way up, first kissing her ankles, then her calves, her thighs, and her tush, where he lingered, and finally the small of her back.

Unable to bear it any longer, she turned around. Taking his face in her hands, she could see the want in his eyes, the need that was almost an ache. They never even made it to the bed, though it was just feet away. When they exhausted themselves, Chad pulled the pillows down, and the comforter, so they could just stay where they had made love.

He held her, brushing his fingertips along her arm. He spoke into the darkness hesitantly, “When do you have to leave?”

“Well, no later than eleven. But you don’t have to get up—”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m getting up.”

“You’ll go back to bed?”

“Probably.” He shifted onto his side, wrapping her in his arms. “I don’t want you to leave.”

“I know. I don’t want to leave either, but...” They both knew she had Cassie, and a job.

“This is harder for me than it is for you,” Chad complained. “You have no idea what you do to me. You make me crazy.” She filled a void inside him, and when she left, it ripped him apart anew.

“Chad...” she began, but she knew there was nothing to say. She could hardly bear to leave him, too. “I’ll look at the tour dates. And you’ll be done by June, right?”

“Yeah,” he sighed. They both lay heavyhearted, knowing that with the sunrise tomorrow, a goodbye waited that neither of them wished to say.

***              

Beth lay with Chad until nearly eleven, skipping a shower to have more time next to him. He walked her to the car without talking. When they reached it, Beth leaned against it. Chad rubbed her arms, looking off beyond to the horizon, trying to find the strength to let her leave. “You’ll be safe?”

She nodded, slipping her arms around his waist and laying her head on his chest. He brought his arms around the woman he knew he would miss with every breath, and laid his cheek on her head. The couple stood like that for several minutes, until she shifted and pulled her head away. He peered down at her, his brow furrowed. He brushed a hair from her face gently, and then bent to kiss her, long and deep. He thought about being with her like this at the gas station. But then, it had been the fever of passion. Now, it was the pain of goodbye. He finally stepped back and opened the car door for her. She slid into her seat and he closed the door. She rolled down the window. “I’ll call you tonight.”

He simply nodded. She reached out and squeezed his hand, and he gave her a small smile. He stepped back and she drove away. Peeking back in her rearview mirror, she could see him striding in the direction of the buses, his hands shoved in his pockets, his head bent against the wind.