Chapter 22 #2
Her attention shifted across the stage and landed on those hidden out of sight, like herself.
Stagehands and security lined the edges, an ever-present dark sea of support.
Interspersed among them were the women who screamed and gyrated with the beat of the music, hoping to garner the attention of the men onstage.
A look at her crumpled scrubs had her spirits deflating. This was not her world. Everyone around her was partying, amped on adrenaline, where all she wanted was a bed. Hell, she’d settle for a couch, something she could collapse into and forget the day.
The pounding music increased the throbbing in her head.
Onstage, a spotlight illuminated Ash, and he tilted his head back, that beautiful voice hammering out lyrics to the frenzy of Bash’s beat.
The band was on fire, and the crowd amplified the energy the band poured out, feeding it back to them.
She’d never experienced anything like it, and while everyone around her fed off the combined energy, each pulse drained her last reserves.
Just as she was about to ask Reggie to take her back, Ash turned, picking her out of the dimness. His face lit up with joy, and he gave Spike a fist-bump.
As Spike, Bent, Noodles, and Bash carried the music, Ash swung his guitar to his back and ran to swoop her into a hug.
He spun her, laughing. “You made it.”
Sweat saturated his T-shirt, but she didn’t care.
The strength of his arms settled her mind, and the pulsating headache eased.
A woodsy spice and musk filled her nostrils.
She breathed in the aroma of coming home as he kissed her.
The contact was too brief, and she wanted more, but he put her down and backed away.
“Don’t you dare move.” He raced back onstage, moving seamlessly back into the music. He rejoined Spike, jamming on the guitar, and finished out the rest of the song.
Roaring filled the arena as exuberant fans expressed their adulation.
Ash pulled the microphone from the stand.
He walked back to the drum set and said something to Bash.
His friend gave a nod. Ash jerked his chin to Spike and Bent, who joined him, as he walked to the keyboards where he said something to Noodles.
Bash held his drumsticks over his head and clicked them together, establishing the beat for the next song.
Spike and Bent moved to the center of the stage with Ash, the three of them holding still with their guitars at the ready.
Bash began a slow steady beat on the drums, a hypnotic rhythm that tunneled into her gut.
Ash took the mic. “This is new. Something we’ve never played before a live crowd.” He chuckled and flashed a rock-star grin as he blinked into the lights. “Don’t get pissed if we fuck it up.”
The crowd screamed.
Noodles played a key on the keyboard. A single resounding note filled the arena.
He followed it with a second warbling chord as Bent’s bass added to the soulful sound.
Bash doubled up the beat, layering in complexity, as Noodles began a melody she’d heard once before on an acoustic guitar in a cabin in the woods.
Spike lay down the intro to Angel Fire’s newest song. Ash cupped the mic in his hands, closed his eyes, and pulled in a deep breath. Then, he belted out the opening lyrics of “Insanity.”
Beside her, Forest jumped. “Holy hellfire. A new fucking song.”
Forest bounced as Ash huffed out words to a song she’d watched him create. It sounded much different with the power of the band behind it, richer and full-bodied.
Spike’s harmonizing blended with Ash’s voice. The audience screamed as the band moved into the chorus. The energy of the arena escalated. Ash opened his eyes as the audience exploded. He turned to her, and the crowd melted away. They were the only people in the arena as he sang about insanity.
It was true. Whatever this thing was between them, it was crazy. She had no idea what the hell they were thinking. No possible way this could ever work, but she knew, in her heart, that Ash would find a way.
A tear trickled down her cheek, and she let it fall.
The wild energy of the crowd proclaimed “Insanity” as Angel Fire’s next mega hit.
Applause descended in a deafening tsunami of sound as the sea of ecstatic fans erupted with their screams and adulation. Skye cupped her hands over her cheeks, using the motion to wipe at the tears before anyone could notice.
Ash spoke to the crowd, thanking them for the evening, and then launched into an encore set.
She stepped close to Forest to yell into his ear, “I’m tired, Bean. I’m going to wait in the dressing room.”
He gave her two thumbs-ups. “See you.”
A quick search, and she found Reggie. “Can you take me back?”
“Don’t want to wait for the end?” he asked.
“No.” She gave a shake of her head. “I’m exhausted, and my head is pounding. I think I need some water and something for my head. Do you mind?”
He took ahold of her upper arm in a gentle grip. “No problem. Stay close.”
The farther they moved from the stage, the worse her head ached. This thing between them was crazy. It would never work, as much as Ash would try to find a way. She had to find a way to say good-bye.