“I’m sorry to bother you, Chase, Ivy was missing you.”
“We’re pretty busy,” I snapped. I regretted my reaction towards her the second the words were out of my mouth. Yeah, I was an asshole.
“Ivy tripped and bumped her head when she fell. I calmed her down, but she really wanted you.”
My eyes widened. “How did that happen? Weren’t you watching her?”
Elle’s eyebrows pulled together; tears were forming in her eyes.
“Chase!” Claire scolded as she entered the room.
Ivy put a hand on my cheek. “Daddy, I’m okay. I fewll on your cowrd.”
“What cord?”
“For your game.”
And my assholery knew no bounds. I looked at Elle, but she kept her eyes averted. I stood up, bringing Ivy with me, and approached Elle and led her to the far end of the room, away from the rest of the band.
“I’m sorry I jumped to conclusions, Elle,” I offered humbly.
She nodded silently.
“We should let you get back to practice,” she said eventually.
Ivy dove into her waiting arms and Elle made a quick retreat. Whereas Elle wouldn’t look at me, my band mates and Claire were staring me down.
“Yeah, I know, none of you need to give me any more grief. I jumped to conclusions. I’ve already apologized. What do you expect me to do?’
“Apologize again,” Claire told me, her lips pursed tightly. “And while you’re at it, stop treating her like she is going to throw in the towel. She’s tougher than that. AND Ivy adores her. Jerk.”
I retreated to the bus a bit like a dog with his tail between his legs. I decided to take a quick nap before the show that night to try and shake the mood that I was in. Ivy was yawning as I boarded the bus so I thought it would be nice to nap with her.
We left Elle alone to make preparations for dinner, and I snuggled up with Ivy in my bed.
I woke an hour and a half later. Sitting up, Elle was still in the kitchen, except the aroma of what she had cooked was mouth-watering. I slid from the bed and walked towards her. Something about the way she moved around the kitchen drew me closer; her body flowed, damn she was flawless.
“Something smells good,” I said, trying to put a good foot forward.
She jumped at the sound of my voice. “It’s beef stew. There’s plenty if you want some.”
“Thanks, maybe later. I’ve got to get ready for the show.”
Elle nodded and prepared a bowl for Ivy, who smiled widely as she strapped her into her booster seat.
With a kiss to Ivy’s head, I headed off the bus and to the dressing room without another word.
The show was tough that night, I was off my game, not feeling the energy, but thankfully the fans were none the wiser.
After the show, the rest of the band and a few crew members stuck around to have a couple of drinks with the band who had been our opening act, but I decided to skip it, heading back to the bus. I was exhausted, and there would be plenty of other occasions to sit around and shoot the shit.
I knew Ivy would be sleeping, but I was surprised and disappointed to find Elle asleep as well. I’d wanted to apologize again for my behaviour.
I cracked opened the fridge and found a bowl of the stew Elle had prepared covered in plastic wrap. I didn’t bother heating it up, so as not to disturb her and Ivy with the beeping of the microwave. Crashing into the couch, I took a bite. Even cold, it was probably the best damn thing I had eaten in a while. Elle could cook and it made me wonder what other talents she had that I didn’t yet know about. If I didn’t ruin things completely and make her leave mid tour, maybe she would continue to surprise me.
Chapter Five
Chase
Ewan stopped playing and pointed a finger in my direction. “You’ve been wound too tight for a while now, Chase, before this tour even began.”
“Yep, and we have figured out the solution – you need to have a little fun,” Brant added with a mischievous wink that instantly made me suspicious.
I narrowed my eyes. “Uh, no thanks, guys.”
“Yep, you’re going. We’re headed to Dixie’s,” Stixx informed me.
It had probably been about five years since I had been in Indianapolis and to Dixie’s. It was a pretty fancy place as far as strip clubs were concerned.
“Come on, guys, you know it really isn’t of interest to me.”
“You’re coming with us. You need to relax or you are going to burst,” Stixx tried to reason with me.
They all but dragged me with them. Instead of my plan to spend the night with a beer on the couch watching something brainless on TV, I was crammed into the back of a cab.
Dixie’s had a posh look about it. The walls were painted in shiny black, everything else was covered in glitter from the bar and tabletops to the sconces on the walls. As the light hit these, rays of light reflected off onto the dark walls. The hostess led the way to the far end of the room, where the stage jutted out with a pole positioned in the middle of it.
One of the girls approached us, arching her back so her breasts suck out further into our faces as she took our drink order.
A petite brunette took the stage and began her tantalizing routine around the pole. I glanced at the guys; they were clearly enthralled with what they saw. Me? I felt nothing. She just didn’t do it for me; then again, strippers usually didn’t.
The waitress returned with our drinks, “accidentally” grazing each of us with pieces of her body – for me it was her thigh.
I tossed the whiskey back, relishing in the familiar burn in the back of my throat.
Absently, I stared off past the dancer when the thought of Elle filled my mind. I pictured the club empty, her up on the stage giving me my own private dance.
“Do you want a lap dance, handsome?”
A curvier brunette asked, pulling me abruptly from my daydream.
I shook my head, but Brant held up some money. “He sure does, sweetheart.”
She smiled and took the money. Her body gyrated and she shook her breasts in my face.
“I’ll give you a private show if you want,” she spoke into my ear.
I’d had enough.
“No thanks.”
I reached into my pocket and handed her a few bills more. “He might want to,” I said, pointing at Brant and returning his favour.
She smiled sweetly at me and nodded.
I stood and walked over to the bar, ordering a double whiskey on the rocks and tossing it back before it had a chance to chill.
After a few more drinks, Stixx sidled up next to me.
“Are you feeling all right, Chase?”
By this time, I was drunk. Stixx sat with me until I’d reached somewhere between drunk and physically sick. He let me finish the remaining drops from my glass before wrapping an arm around my shoulders and leading me outside to a waiting cab.
Elle
“What’s going on?” I mumbled sleepily pushing myself up to sitting. There was a crick in my neck from the position I fell asleep in. I blinked, taking in my surroundings. I must have dozed off on the couch.
Scuffling and cursing came up the stairs of the front of the bus.
Stixx appeared first, pulling Chase along with him.
“He had a little bit too much liquid fun tonight. Chase, can you get yourself to bed?”
He mumbled incoherently.
“It’s okay, I can make sure he gets into bed.” Why did I volunteer to do that? I had to blame it on my sleep addled brain not functioning at one hundred percent.
Stixx looked at me for a moment, no doubt wondering the same thing then shrugged and made room for me to get under Chase’s shoulder.
“Thanks, Elle. Have a good night.”
“Yeah, you too. Thanks, guys.”
Stixx made his exit and I shuffled Chase and I down the bus to his room.
“Can you stand?” I asked him.
“Yeah. I’m good,” he half slurred.
&nbs
p; Oh good, at least he was speaking with words this time.
I pushed his jacket off his shoulders, dropping it to the bed. His shirt was damp, reeking of liquor. Hesitating for a minute, I debated removing it. He was my boss after all and it would be weird to undress him, not to mention highly inappropriate. But he was in no state to clean himself up and I doubted he would want to wake up like that. Mustering up the nerve, I lifted it up and over his head, but being shorter than he was, and without his cooperation, it was a struggle and I couldn’t quite get the leverage I needed.
“Chase, please help me. Take off your shirt.”
He eyed me for a moment, swaying unsteadily back and forth on his feet before he listened. And for my efforts, I was gifted with the perfect view of his sculpted chest. My knees went weak, even in his drunk state. Unfortunately, his movements set him off balance and he teetered. I tried to brace him, but he was too big and heavy, so I did the only thing I could think of – I gave him a small push backward. He fell to his back, collapsing onto the bed and taking me with him. I landed on his chest, my hands splayed across those sculpted pecs.
“Well, this is an interesting turn of events,” he laughed.
I pushed myself off. “It’s not like I had a choice,” I snapped, feeling embarrassment burn my cheeks. “You grabbed me. Let me go now so you can get some rest.”
He grumbled at my suggestion, but his eyes closed and in less than a minute, he was out cold.
Chapter Six
Elle
The trip between Indianapolis and our next location, Denver Colorado, was a long stretch; so we hadn’t set out until mid-morning to allow the drivers a chance to rest up. Ivy was playing with some paint at the table when Chase shuffled from his room, his hair ruffled and a guitar in his hand. How much did he remember about last night? He grabbed a large cup of coffee and kissed Ivy on the top of the head as he passed.
“Good morning, lovebug.”
He sat down on the couch, sipped his coffee for a few minutes before letting out a long breath, and then brought the beautiful blue guitar across his lap and began strumming. I tried my best not to watch him, but it wasn’t easy. So, I picked up my phone and sent a message to one of my friends back home.
“What are you doing, Ewlle?”
“Today is my friend’s birthday. I’m sending her a message.”
“Is she having a party?”
I nodded. “Yes, I think my friends are having a party for her.”
“Do you want to go?” she asked, her beautiful brown eyes wide with curiosity.
I smiled. “I’m too far away to be able to go, but that’s okay, I get to spend the day with you instead.”
She smiled widely at me before picking up her paint brush again.
“Daddy?”
“Yeah?”
“When is my birfday?”
“A few weeks away yet.”
“Can I have a party too, Daddy? Like Ewlle’s friend?”
I saw his smile falter just slightly and just for a moment.
“Of course, you can.”
Ivy giggled with excitement. Her smile was infectious. “Ewlle, I’m going to be four!”
“Four? Wow, you are such a big girl already!”
While she returned to her painting, I returned to my phone, replying to friends that I had neglected since the tour had started.
But my mind was elsewhere. The wheels began turning on how to help Chase make Ivy’s birthday the best it could be.
After a couple of hours into the trip, the bus slowed and pulled into a pit stop along the side of the road.
“We’re stopping here for a quick bite to eat and to let the drivers stretch their legs,” Chase informed me. “Come on, Ivy, let’s get some food.”
I followed them off of the bus and was faced with an old beat up tiny little diner that was situated off to the left of a rough looking gas station. The sky was dark and gloomy in the background, a cold, wet chill to the air. Inside, the rest of our group had already ordered and begun eating their food when we got to the counter. Chase ordered for himself and Ivy before looking over to me expectantly.
“What are you having?”
“Nothing, thanks.”
He crossed his arms across his chest. “Order something. If you don’t, I’m going to order for you.”
“I can get my own food, or eat on the bus.”
“Or you can stop being difficult.”
With the unimpressed look on his face, maybe it wasn’t worth continuing to protest.
“Fine.” I sighed, looking up at the menu board. “A grilled cheese.”
“Thank you.”
He handed over the money to the waitress and sat down in one of the remaining empty chairs, pulling Ivy onto his lap. I hovered near Claire.
“I was thinking,” Brant started.
“That’s always dangerous,” Stixx quickly retorted.
“Fuck off, I’m being serious. I was thinking that Chase, you should get on board our bus for the next leg of the trip so that we can work on some music. What do you think?”
The waitress appeared with the remaining food. “Can I get you anything else?”
Chase gave her a smile. “This is great, thanks.” He took a big bite of his burger and turned back to Brant. “Yeah, I guess we could play for a while. I’ll grab my guitar before we get moving again.”
When we were all full and ready to go again, Chase led the way back to our bus, where he grabbed his guitar case from his bedroom and gave Ivy a kiss to the top of her head. “Be good. See you later.”
It wasn’t until later that evening when we arrived at the next stop on the tour that Chase returned. He offered me a half smile as he passed by me on the couch and stopped to tuck Ivy in and then headed off to his room. Once I was sure that Ivy had gone off to sleep, I decided it might be a good time to approach Chase, my mind buzzing all day with new ideas for Ivy’s birthday.
As I stood to go speak with him, the sound of the first fat drops of rain splattered against the bus windows.
“Chase?” I tapped on his door.
“Come in,” came his mumbled reply.
I slowly slid open his door. “I’m sorry to bother you, but I wanted to talk to you about Ivy.”
“Is something wrong?” he asked, straightening up a little.
“No, no. It’s about her birthday.”
“Oh, uh… I’ve got it covered; you don’t have to worry about that.”
“But just in case you needed some ideas or any help, my mind has been swirling all day.”
He was quiet as I rambled on excitedly, listing a couple of my thoughts before his raised voice stopped me.
“Would you please stop. I’ll figure it out, okay? I don’t need your help.”
“Oh. I’m sorry, it’s just that I love to plan parties, but maybe I got carried away.”
“You aren’t even her mom, Elle, why do you care so much?”
Ouch. Something in my chest snapped. Before he could see the tears fall down my face, I turned and rushed down the length of the bus, racing to the front door. I needed to leave. I needed to get some space between me and that asshole.
I heard Chase call after me, but I didn’t look back. Screw that; and screw him. Why did he have a problem with everything I did?
Maybe he didn’t like/want my ideas, but did he have to try to hurt me?
The rain was cold and came down in cold, heavy drops that stung against my skin, but I didn’t care. I needed a break from Chase. In seconds, I was soaked through my clothes.
“Where are you going?” Chase shouted from the door.
“Away from you! Leave me alone.”
I heard the water splashing as his boots pounded through the puddles on the pavement.
“Why do you have to be such a DICK?!” I yelled over my shoulder, refusing to look at him.
“I’m sorry,” he stated quietly. He’d stopped so close behind me that I could feel warmth radiating off of him. “I shouldn’t have said
what I did. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
I spun around to face him. “You have made it clear that I am not wanted here. I know I’m not Ivy’s mom, you don’t have to tell me, but I adore that kid, and considering I had no experience being a nanny before this thing, I think I’m doing pretty well. You, however, seem to take some sick pleasure in keeping me at arm’s length, making me feel like I am this huge inconvenience. I swear if I didn’t care for Ivy so much and if I didn’t need this stupid job, I’d pack up my stuff and get the hell out of here.”
Hot tears fell down my face mixing, with the cold rain. Chase placed his hands on my shoulders and stepped closer still. “I’m sorry, Elle. Nothing went right earlier. I’ve been stressing about this new music, if you can even call it that, and when I came back here, I took it out on you. You didn’t deserve that. I don’t want you to go. Ivy clearly adores you.”
“I just wanted to help,” I mumbled.
“I know you did. And I’m too much of a prick and too damn proud to admit I need help.”
He brought his hands up to his face, sweeping them up and through his dripping hair. “Let’s get back on the bus. I promise to try and be less of a pain in the ass.”
Nodding slowly, he turned and fell in beside me as I took a step back toward the bus, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and following along.
“What are you doing outside?” Ewan shouted at us from the other bus.
“Mind your own fucking business, dickface!” Chase shot back over his shoulder.
Once we were back on the bus, he grabbed me a large towel from the closet and wrapped it around my shoulders.
“Are we okay?” he asked nervously. “When I’m ready to plan the party, I’ll let you know, and you can share all of your ideas with me, okay?”
I nodded even though I didn’t feel a hundred percent about things between us, maybe there was a small glimmer of hope that the tension would ease up just a little bit.
Chapter Seven
Elle
Two weeks and countless smaller venues later, things were better between us even though he hadn’t been around much. Press interviews and lots of band meetings kept him busy, but still I could feel that the air between us had cleared of the negativity that had once been there.
Chasing Melody Page 3
