Chapter Thirty-Eight
One Year Later
I’m at the rehearsal studio in New Jersey.
Anna’s sitting next to me as we watch the guys performing like they’ve never stopped.
I’d almost forgotten how amazing they are.
They get to the end of their latest song, “Symphony,” which is a different sound for them but one I still love.
It’s one of those awesome blended songs that have the hard rock with an orchestra in the background.
It shows how much their music is evolving, just as the band members are.
“Okay, I think we’re good guys,” Sia says as the song wraps up.
Anna and I both clap and cheer.
Colt smiles, and I look down at my forearm at my matching ‘D & C Until the End of Time’ tattoo.
I am so beyond happy right now. My boyfriend’s about to perform again for the first time in a year, my best friend is pregnant, and Joseph and Danny are so run off their feet with the restaurant that they’re looking at opening a second.
Everything is going right.
Warmth wraps around me, while Colt is holding me tight. “So, can I get an early anniversary present tonight?” he whispers seductively.
“Valentine’s Day is only a week away. Surely you can wait till then?” I raise my brow. His mouth drops open in shock, and I laugh.
“Don’t worry, Mr. Slade will be getting laid tonight. I’ll just have to think of something special for the fourteenth,” I whisper as he groans, leaning in to kiss me.
“Get a room,” Dingo calls out.
“Good idea,” Colt says and takes my hand, dragging me outside to a cab and back to our suite next to the penthouse at the Rutherford Regent Hotel, where we make love most of the night.
After hours of ecstasy with Colt, I’m lying in bed, cuddled into him, and just about to drift off.
“You laughed,” Colt exclaims loudly, like it’s a revelation.
I look up at him. “What?”
“You laughed because I had a boner.”
“What are you on about?”
He looks deeply into my eyes. “Our first kiss, I remember. It was in the hallway of the club at the after-party. I kissed you, and you laughed because I had a massive hard-on for you,” he says with a gigantic smile.
“Wow! You do remember,” I say, surprised.
He nods. “I told you I want to remember every second we have together. I can’t believe I forgot,” he says, leaning down and kissing me, starting another round of lovemaking.
***
The stadium explodes with noise as the halftime siren blares through MetLife.
Seventy thousand people on their feet, screaming, chanting, drunk on adrenaline at the Super Bowl.
Anna bumps her shoulder against mine, grinning as we soak in the energy. This moment is unreal. But when I turn to Colt, the world around us fades. His fingers struggle with the shoulder strap of his guitar, his chest rising and falling a little too fast.
For the first time, I see it.
Nerves.
Real, raw, ‘holy shit, I’m about to perform at the freaking Super Bowl’ nerves.
I step in without a word, taking the strap from him.
His eyes find mine. His breathing slows.
He’s got this.
“Babe, I know you’re nervous, but you will be amazing.
You guys have been practicing for months and know what you’re doing.
Take a deep breath, and don’t think about the fans and whether they’ll like it or not.
You know the music is the best you guys have done, so play it for you.
Remember how much you love performing,” I say, handing him back his strap.
He smiles and hooks the strap in the first time. “What would I do without you?” He leans in and kisses my head.
“Fall into a pit of endless despair and depression, wasting your days away watching cartoons and drinking beer. Oh, and don’t forget the continuous farting.”
“I watch cartoons, drink beer, and fart now. How will it be any different?”
“You forgot the endless pit of despair and depression. That’s the difference.”
“Right, so just add pizza, and I can wallow in my own filth and think of the days when I was rooting for this hot chick whose name was Dee.”
My mouth drops open in mock shock. “So, I’m just a root now, am I?” I ask, putting my hands on my hips, but I can’t hide my smile.
“Well, you know,” He tilts his head to the side. “You’re okay! I guess I can keep you around for a little while longer,” he says. “Only you, always,” he whispers softly, rubbing his nose along mine.
“I love you, too,” I reply.
“Right, it’s time to rock, guys,” Rob calls out, clapping his hands together.
I look at Colt, and the nervousness in his eyes vanishes, replaced with pure adrenaline and excitement.
“Go on, rock god! Go show the world what they’ve been missing out on.
” I gently slide his dog tags under his tank top and tap them gently.
A gesture we do before each show for good luck and a reminder of everything we’ve been through.
He smiles, leans in kissing me gently, and I pull back with a wicked grin, then slap his ass as he walks off.
He turns back to look at me, and I give him two thumbs up.
He nods, then walks out with the rest of the band.
Anna and Sia amble across, and the three of us move to the side of the stage.
We’re in our own private area, which Johnny arranged.
He didn’t want anyone near Anna while she’s pregnant, especially with the crowds expected at the Super Bowl, which will undoubtedly go crazy once they realize 12GAUGE-Slayed are back together on stage.
I feel like a schoolgirl.
It’s like I’m back at that first concert in London, where I’d just met Colt and the band.
I hardly knew Anna and Sia, and I had no idea what I was getting myself into.
That feels like a lifetime ago now, and as I stand here listening to the crowd going absolutely ballistic, I find myself thinking of my life with Colt.
It’s been rocky, that’s for sure.
Was I bonkers, dropping everything, and going on tour with the world’s greatest rock band? Yeah, probably, but it’s a decision I’m now thankful for.
The introduction pulls me back into the now.
“And the moment the world has been waiting for…. The band that has gone multi-platinum… The band that brought you the world’s biggest songs, “Rapture” and “Until the End of Time…” The band that’s going to rock your socks off.
Get ready, MetLife Stadium for 12GAUGE-Slayed,” an announcer says over the PA system.
The crowd cheers and stomps their feet in the over eighty-two thousand capacity stadium filled with fans.
It’s loud! A thrill of excitement rolls through me, and I can’t help but jump up and down as Dingo starts the drumbeat.
This comeback has been a long time coming.
Practically a year in the making, and the whole world is watching.
Hux walks out on stage, and the crowd cheers.
Johnny soon follows him, and again, the crowd cheers.
Johnny and Hux start the chords to the beginning of “Rapture,” and Colt finally joins them.
The stadium explodes. People are cheering, clapping, stomping, generally making as much noise as they can, and it’s all for Colt.
I’m so proud of him right now.
He’s come so far.
Colt walks up to the microphone and smiles, the cheekiness touching his eyes. “New Jeeerseeey,” he yells, and the crowd screams. He’s in the zone, and my panties are soaking, as are the panties of most of the women in the stadium.
“So we had a little break…” He brings up his thumb and forefinger and shows a little gap. “But now we’re back and ready to rock your bloody socks off. So scream if you wanna hear “Rapture,” ” he says into the microphone, and everyone does, including me and Anna.
Sia laughs and wraps her arms around our shoulders.
Colt starts playing his guitar, leading the song, then he begins singing.
I can’t even describe the emotion I feel watching him perform like he’s meant to.
He’s rocking the stadium, and every part of him screams sex appeal.
I’m seriously the luckiest woman on the face of the planet to have a man who’s so undeniably rock-god sexy.
The concert’s a massive success, and they’re finishing up and about to play their final song. Colt steps up to the microphone and looks straight at me. I smile and wave, causing him to chuckle.
“Okay, so we have one more song for you all, then it’s back into the recording studio for us and the game for you.
I want you all to know how amazed and humbled we all are that you accepted us back into the magical world of music.
And let’s be honest, we wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for our amazing partners, and mine in particular.
Dee, baby, can you come up here, please? ” he asks, smiling at me.
The big screen lights up with my face, and I shake my head adamantly.
No way!
I don’t belong on the stage.
How embarrassing!
A security guard walks over and smiles. “This way, Miss Norman, please,” he says.
Paralyzing fear engulfs me. “Colt, no,” I say, and the stadium laughs.
“Don’t worry, baby. I’m not going to make you sing. I want to show the world how pretty you are,” he says, and I laugh as the crowd all screams.
I huff and walk with the security guard, and he helps me get up onto the stage.
Colt holds out his hand, and I walk across to him and take it. I look out at the crowd and nearly pass the fuck out.
Shit! Fuck! Shit!
Holy fuck!
Holy fucking shit fuck!
How the hell can he perform like he does, looking at all these people who are staring right back at you? I hear him chuckle while I feel like I want to be physically ill. He pulls me to him, and I take my eyes off the crowd and simply look at Colt.
“Isn’t she gorgeous, everyone?” Colt asks, and the crowd cheers again.
Oh God!