Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Ross
It’s a busy morning as I attempt to come up with a plan for the band.
The most obvious option is to postpone the show and add it to the end of the tour.
The issue with that is that we have a full schedule with a European leg set to begin at the tail end of the US leg, but the dates aren’t set in stone yet, so adding on could become problematic.
Plus, it takes months to prepare for their world tours.
This is the first major tour since Devyn joined the band, and she adds a slightly different dynamic, so there are details to sort out that have nothing to do with the music itself.
Putting any major changes into place now could add a level of complication no one needs.
I made a handful of phone calls to people I know, but no one is available to drop everything and come to Phoenix for the night, which leaves me back at square one.
After lunch, I knock on Tommy’s door, hoping we hear something from Kingston sooner rather than later. Devyn texted that the wait would probably be a couple of hours, so we still don’t have answers.
“Hey.” Tommy opens the door looking like he just woke up.
“It’s after one,” I tell him, arching a brow. “And we didn’t even play last night.”
“Well, we didn’t play music,” he says, pouring himself a cup of coffee. “That doesn’t mean Harley and I didn’t go out.”
I chuckle. “She still asleep?”
He shakes his head. “No. She got up to work out.” He looks at me over the brim of his cup. “You want a cup?”
“Nah, I’m good.” I sink into a chair by the window.
“Still no word from King?”
“The place is busy. They’re still waiting.”
“We leave for soundcheck in a couple of hours,” he points out needlessly.
“I don’t know what we’re gonna do,” I say, “but we’ll have to decide in the next hour. If we’re going to cancel, we want to do it before people actually leave for the show.”
“It’s going to depend on how long it takes King,” he replies. “I hate to cancel, but not much we can do if he can’t sing.”
“I tried to find a singer, but no one was available.”
“I can sing a couple of songs, but I don’t have his register,” Tommy says thoughtfully. “Devyn and Z sing a little too, but not enough to carry us, and I don’t think Kellan has the range to pull off a whole set either.”
“It might be best to just call it,” I admit. “And not even bother making it up at the end since we don’t have much time.”
“I hate that for our fans,” Tommy says. “Especially since this is the first full tour since Carter.”
It’s hard to think about the bass player we lost, but Devyn is amazing and the band’s new album is killing it.
“It’s a new era for us,” I say quietly. “You’re all married now, with women and kids on tour… it feels different.”
“It’s good, though, don’t you think?” He cocks his head curiously.
“Well, it doesn’t change a lot for me. Except, you know, not having to check the IDs of the groupies now that you boys are all wifed up.”
“You almost sound jealous.”
“Nah. It’s not easy to be in a relationship with what I do.”
“That why you’re still single?” he asks casually.
“Well, that and the fact that it’s hard to meet nice women who want to be with a guy who’s on tour for two years at a time.” There’s no reason to deny it.
“Wynter’s single. And she’s a very nice woman.”
I hesitate.
She’s definitely a nice woman, but her infatuation with Ross & The Rock-its bothers me, so I don’t know if it would work out.
“She knows who I am,” I blurt out. “Or, you know, who I used to be.”
His eyes widen. “Does it matter?”
I exaggerated when I told Wynter that no one knows who I am.
The band did a full background check before hiring me, and when they asked about it, I simply let them know I wasn’t interested in talking about or reliving the past. They took me at my word, and it never came up again.
“What’d you tell her?”
“The truth. That it was my past and I didn’t want to talk about it.”
“She’s wonderful,” he says slowly. “She deserves someone who’ll love her and take care of her emotionally. I don’t think she’s worried about you being on tour.”
“I barely know her,” I protest.
“Yeah, but you think she’s hot, right?” He grins and I can’t help but chuckle.
“She’s beautiful,” I agree.
“So, you’re interested.” It’s more a statement than a question, and I hesitate before nodding.
“Is the problem with her specifically or just where you are in life?”
“The bigger problem is that she brought up the Ross Rockit thing again when Kingston said he might not be able to sing. After I’d asked her to leave it alone.”
Tommy’s eyes snap to mine, but I immediately shake my head. “No fuckin’ way, man. I haven’t sung in years. Even if I wanted to—which I absolutely do not—my voice is in no shape to do an Onyx Knight set.”
“What about a third of a set?” he counters. “If King can sing some, and I can do one or two…” He lets the question linger unanswered, but I continue to shake my head.
“Me getting up in front of a crowd like that would reopen wounds that have barely healed,” I say firmly. “It’s not happening. Please don’t ask.”
He puts up his hands in mock surrender. “Okay, okay. It was worth a shot.”
Just then my phone buzzes, and I see a text from Kingston.
“They’re back,” I tell him. “He wants to meet up in his suite.”
Tommy gets to his feet. “Let’s go.”