CHAPTER 16
JETTE
Jette used the back of her hand to wipe a drop of sweat from her brow.
Her hands were dirty from packing up the drum set and loading the rest of the equipment into the trailer.
Sav, Finley, and Paulie had already finished loading their cases so only Jette and the last few remaining crew members were milling around the loading dock backstage.
Jette was used to being the last one to finish packing up at the end of show nights.
Drums generally required significantly more time to break down and pack.
It was times like these when Jette almost wished that her dad had pushed her to become a guitar player instead of a drummer. Almost.
She pulled the door to the dressing room open and breathed a sigh of relief to find it mostly empty.
The rest of the band had packed up their belongings, giving Jette her first moment alone since this morning.
Her back spasmed as she knelt to stuff her makeup bag into the black backpack on the floor.
The sharp pain caused Jette to inhale sharply through gritted teeth and she reached a hand back to massage the sore spot. Behind her, the door creaked open.
“You okay, Jette?” Natalie was hovering in the doorway and looking at her with concern.
Her piercing blue eyes were locked onto Jette’s hand rubbing her lower back.
Jette nodded and opened her mouth to respond when Nat cut her off.
“I can get you an appointment with a massage therapist when we get to Phoenix. I’m booking one for myself anyways.
” Her tone was clipped like always even though she clearly spoke with care.
Jette gave an appreciative thanks and continued gathering her things, assuming the conversation had come to a natural close, but Nat hesitated instead.
“Were those your friends here earlier?” She fidgeted with her nails as Jette turned to look at her.
“Yes,” she answered. “I’m sorry if I wasn’t allowed to bring them back here.
I wasn’t sure how these things usually work and I didn’t want to bother you before the show.
” Nat waved her off with a dismissive hand.
From anyone else, the gesture would’ve seemed flippant and rude, but from Natalie it was simply business as usual.
“Not a problem at all. You can bring whoever you want backstage. Next time, just give me a heads up so I can have their names added to the day sheet.” Natalie paused and the gleam in her eyes turned inquisitive.
“Finley said there was a definite vibe when she walked in.” She grinned mischievously and Jette’s jaw dropped before spluttering in surprise.
“No judgment here,” she made a show of crossing her heart. “They were both very attractive.”
“Oh my god, Nat,” Jette laughed in utter disbelief.
This was certainly not where she saw this conversation going.
“It’s nothing like that,” she blurted out.
“The woman in orange, Lida? She’s just a friend.
And Reese, the woman in the—” Her mind went blank as she struggled to find a respectful way to describe Reese’s mesh ensemble.
Her throat was painfully dry from the memory of it.
“In the—um—other outfit? She’s my…friend.
” The word stuck in her throat clumsily.
Jette had barely had time to overthink the past twenty-four hours.
Even when she had been too busy to think clearly, part of her mind still replayed the events from last night.
She and Reese had always been close—arguably, too close—but last night it was as if something permanently shifted.
The word ‘friend’ didn’t feel fitting, but any other label felt foreign.
And after the way last night had gone, Jette couldn’t imagine waking up today and simply returning to their friendship.
It didn’t feel possible anymore. Jette’s head hadn’t stopped reeling since Reese grabbed her knee under the table.
It didn’t feel real. Not even when her first waking moments this morning were spent in Reese’s arms. Everything seemed to blur together.
“Just a friend and your…friend. Got it.” Nat flashed a dazzling white smile after perfectly mimicking Jette’s awkward pause in her phrasing. Jette rolled her eyes exasperatedly and watched Nat retreat from the doorway in a flash, undoubtedly to resume her laundry list of post-show tasks.
Her cheeks were still noticeably warm and the heavy gray bathroom door caught her attention as she hoisted the bag onto her shoulder.
Jette raked a hand through her messy curls which were now stiff with dried sweat and residual hair product.
Tears pricked in her eyes as her rings painfully caught the knots.
She glanced down at her damp clothes and back to the door for an instant before she pulled on the handle and dumped her bag on the bathroom counter.
She dug through her bag impatiently for a clean outfit complete except for a pair of underwear.
Not that she’d be needing them, she mused with a thrill.
Swiftly, she reached behind the old and faded flimsy shower curtain and tugged on the handle, gasping when the first icy drops rained down her wrist.
Jette carefully looked herself over in the mirror.
Her eyes latched onto the stubborn pink mark on the side of her neck that was still just barely visible even under a considerable amount of concealer.
She ran her fingers over the spot and revisited the feeling of waking up in Reese’s arms and the way her chest felt almost too full at the memory.
She could only hope Reese had felt the same.
Deep down, she suspected that a part of her would have always begrudgingly hoped that Reese would be available someday.
She just hadn’t expected to learn that that day had come a lot sooner than anticipated.
Her heart thudded painfully hard. As long as she’d known Reese, she’d felt that Reese deserved better than the way Kiran treated her.
And more than anything, Jette wanted to be the one to treat her the way she deserved.
Reese had always made a point to call Jette and keep her updated on the highlights of her life, but Jette wanted more.
She wanted to call Reese on her drive home and hear every boring detail from work, or every drill she’d run at practice.
Jette wanted to wake up and hear about her dreams to know what she experienced in the hours they’d spent apart while sleeping.
She wanted to steal kisses while cooking dinner and giggle over the way Reese burned dessert because in the end it didn’t really matter.
All that mattered was that Jette could spend every minute trying to make Reese happy.
To make them both happy. Together. Jette could feel her head getting dizzy.
God, even if last night was only a tenth of the kind of happiness she could experience, then Jette wanted it.
Her breathing grew faster as she remembered the way Reese had rolled on top of her this morning and how slowly their lips met over and over again.
Jette could feel her fingers twitch as she recalled the way she delicately traced Reese’s every curve.
Every touch seemed like it was simultaneously brand new and something they’d done a thousand times before.
Like their bodies knew each other on a deeper level than either of them could ever explain.
Jette kicked off her shoes and shimmied out of her pants as she slid the shower curtain open. Maybe there was no use in waiting for the water to warm up. With her face flushed and her heartbeat thudding uncomfortably between her legs, maybe a cold shower was exactly what Jette needed right now.