by Bev Dulson
Clearly not everyone. She was only young, she’d learn. ‘Not my type,’ Trina waved her wedding ring at her.
‘Married or not, I still would, hell I’d dump my boyfriend in a heartbeat for Johnny.’
Trina’s heart sank. What was wrong with the world, when did love become so disposable? Dean. Would she drop him tomorrow if someone better came along? Of course she wouldn’t they might be having a few problems, but they’d work it out. Once they’d got back to the hotel last night, having a few cocktails in bars along the route home (well cocktails for her, lager for Dean...you can take the man out of Liverpool!) they’d actually had sex for the first time in ages. OK, so it had been a quickie, but there was a lot to be said for them.
Magenta had rocked the stage first, belting out hit after hit, the crowd, despite sitting at large round dinner tables had quickly vacated their seats and headed to the dance floor. Towards the end of the set, Hunter had moved towards back stage so he could congratulate her when she came off stage, he loved the wild look in her eyes, the euphoria when she’d finished performing, her body was on fire. He stood at the opposite of the stage from Trina, Mags had already clocked him, given him a cheeky wink during her last song. He knew which side of the stage she’d be coming off.
‘Guys, you’ve been amazing, it’s so good to be back in New York, my second favourite city in the world. I’ll be back on stage later, but for now give it up for my favourite boys, Broken Arrow.’
The crowd went wild as she exited stage left and Broken Arrow appeared stage right. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, the gorgeous Magenta Valentina.’
Magenta was wrapped in Hunter’s arms, his lips on hers as she heard the crowd cheer for her. Hunter pulled away. ‘Babe, you were on fire tonight, you had the crowd in the palm of your hand.’
Grabbing him by the collar of his jacket, her mouth opening to his, but not quite close enough to kiss she said. ’Now it’s time for me to be in the palm of yours.’
He groaned deep into her mouth as their lips finally connected. He could feel the heat coming off her body, the sweat in her hair making her shampoo smell even more potent and intoxicating, the dampness of her long auburn hair was already at the post sex stage, making her curls even curlier. His hands cupped her jaw, his thumbs on her cheeks, stroking the soft sheen of perspiration on her skin.
‘How long till your back on stage?’ His lips were kissing along her jawline, down her neck, up towards her ear, the taste of salt from her skin was like pin pricks on his lips.
‘15 minutes.’
She was already pulling him away from the stage, back towards her dressing room. Over her shoulder she could see Johnny onstage, he grinned at her. She closed her eyes, concentrating only on Hunter, letting him guide her as she walked backwards. Once in her dressing room, slamming the door behind her she pushed him up against the door. The adrenaline from being on stage was still pumping around her body, energy that needed to be expelled. She was pulling at Hunter’s belt, her teeth biting his bottom lip as she became impatient, the buckle slipping through her fingertips. He had already worked her leather mini skirt over her backside, pulled her knickers to one side and just as his thumb found her clitoris, she finally had him in hand. She gasped as his fingers slid inside her, she’d been ready the moment she came off stage.
‘Oh my God,’ his voice was lost as he buried his head into her hair, moving in rhythm with her hand and his fingers.
‘Fuck!’ She shuddered against him, she knew it wouldn’t take her long to reach an orgasm. Before she even had time to recover, he swept her up, her legs wrapped around his waist, he plunged into her, she gripped the door frame, not sure if she could take any more, but knowing she wanted him more than ever. The door vibrated with each movement, neither of them caring, too absorbed in the moment. She screamed out in pleasure, her hands now underneath his open shirt, resting on his shoulders to keep her balance, she felt the tell-tale sign of goose bumps on his skin seconds before his orgasm. He pulled her close to him, wrapping his arms tightly around her.
‘I bloody love you, la.’
Her head flopped on his shoulder, her energy released, letting him hold her up. ‘Mmm, back at ya, la.’
Her phone beeped indicating an incoming text.
5 mins till your back on stage. T X
‘Ah just Trine giving me my five minute warning.’
‘You can’t keep your fans waiting Mizz Valentina.’
She grabbed him. ‘Thank you for the quickie, just what I needed.’
‘You know I am always at your beck and call.’
After a quick tidy up of her hair and rearrangement of her clothes, Magenta was back on stage. Johnny introduced her, held is hand out for her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. ‘Wasn’t sure you’d be back in time, your man must be quick,’ he whispered in her ear.
She just grinned. ‘He’s precise, knows what he’s doing.’
The crowd, oblivious to their onstage conversation cheered, waiting for them to perform.
‘So, you guys have been awesome tonight and not only have you cheered for us, but you’ve raised a hell of a lot of money for charity, so it seems only fair we reward your generosity with an exclusive performance of ‘Fingertips’ this is the first time we’ve sung this song live in the US, so please enjoy,’ Johnny informed the crowd.
Sloth started the slow instrumental on his guitar, with Fly punctuating the end of the intro with a beat and Johnny began to sing. It was an epic power ballad, it told the story of a couple who were battling the odds to stay together, hanging on by their fingertips. The only thing that seemed to be keeping them united was their passion for each other. As they sang their appropriate verses, Magenta and Johnny played the part of lovers torn apart, the passion in their voices was believable.
As it should be, Trina thought as she watched them perform the heartfelt song. The audience had to buy into the song, the lyrics, the feeling. The irony wasn’t lost on Trina, her marriage seemed to be falling apart around her, she didn’t have a clue how to stop it. At least the people Magenta and Johnny were singing about still had fire between them, the same couldn’t be said for her and Dean.
Hunter appeared alongside her.
‘They’re good out there aren’t they?’
‘Hmm, too good.’
‘Johnny’s no threat to you.’
As Trina spoke, the song reached its powerful crescendo; Magenta and Johnny were standing close together, face to face as Johnny sang the last few words, begging his lover not to leave him. Magenta bowed her head to signal the song had finished. Johnny tipped her face back up to his and left a lingering kiss on her lips. Magenta, still trying to stay in character, put her hand on his chest to push him away and turned her head. The crowd went wild.
‘No. but he is a knob,’ Hunter muttered as he watched Magenta and Broken Arrow take their bows. He could tell by the look on Magenta’s face as she stormed off stage that she was fuming. As soon as Johnny was off stage she rounded on him.
‘What the hell was that about?’
He shrugged. ‘Aah c’mon Magenta, it was just playing to the crowd, listen to them, they love it.’
‘You can play all you want, but I am not a toy. You’re meant to be a mate Johnny, don’t complicate things and don’t be a div.’
‘What the hell is a div?’
Fly arrived alongside his bandmate. ‘I think it’s a polite way of saying you’re a dick.’
Logan appeared from across the stage iPad in hand. ’Magenta, I’ve got bad news.’
‘What?’
‘Roxie Meyers just hit the number one spot on iTunes with your song.’
‘You are fucking joking me?’
All they could do was watch as Magenta went mental, not even Hunter could calm her down as she raged, her fire had been fuelled by Johnny and his immature actions and now burned as Roxie took her song to number one.
‘How the hell did this happen?’ She yelled.
Trina tried to usher out
the fans who were supposed to come backstage for a meet and greet, but the damage had been done.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Trina finally got back to her hotel, The Knickerbocker just after 11pm. She’d left Magenta in the capable hands of Hunter after she’d finally calmed down. She was absolutely knackered and her head was chocka, her body was telling her it was 4am and it had been a long day. The door creaked as she opened it, the room deep in darkness; she’d already assumed that Dean would’ve been out for the count. She used the light from her phone to get her to the bathroom, flicking the light on to give her a bit of light in the main room for her to be able to find her PJ’s. Now that her eyes had adjusted she was aware that a lot of light was coming in from the window, Dean hadn’t drawn the curtains. She went over to the window to be met by a view of Times Square in all its night time glory, lights, people, she could almost feel the vibe pulsating through the glass as she held a hand up to it like a kid looking through a sweet shop window. She smiled, New York, she was really here, the city of dreams.
For now though, the jet lag was taking over her body, her arms felt like lead as she stretched and yawned. Time for bed. As she passed Dean’s side of the bed she could see his phone flashing, she’d better check it, just in case it was the kids trying to get in touch. She reached for the handset, the smiling image of her kids Dean junior and Jade stared back at her. She could see the WhatsApp icon had messages, thinking it might be the family WhatsApp page, she put her finger on the app and it opened up. The message was from someone called Sally. Her hand flew to her mouth as she was greeted with an image of what she assumed were Sally’s boobs, she scrolled further up the messages and saw pictures her own husband had sent, intermingled with instructions on what they’d like to do to each other. Trina felt the bile rise up to her throat. She threw the phone down onto the bed, air, she needed air.
She got out of the suite as fast as she could and took the lift up to the St. Cloud Rooftop bar. She headed straight out onto the terrace, the night air hitting her straight away, almost like the slap in the face she needed. She should’ve been taking in the amazing view, but instead all she could focus on was the fact that her husband of twenty years was a liar and a cheat. It all made sense now, the constant attachment to his phone, the often guilty looks. Was Sally the only one or were there more? Had he met up with her? The breeze in the air blew her hair off her face but she was as oblivious to that as she was to the people around her, the music and whatever else was going on. She took a few deep breaths; she needed to focus on her surroundings to get her head back together. She closed her eyes, she could hear the music, the chatter of the people around her, she could smell a mix of perfumes and aftershaves, expensive brands, she could feel the beat of the music through the floor and into her feet, she could feel a hand on her shoulder.
‘Shit!’ Her eyes sprang open as she turned around. She was met by grey blue eyes full of concern and the most handsome face she tried to deny was handsome. ‘Fuck, Johnny, what are you trying to do to me?’
‘Sorry, kid. You looked like you had the weight of the world on your shoulders, just thought I’d see if you were OK.’
‘I’m fine, what are you doing here?’
‘One of my favourite places to hang out when I’m in New York, just catching up with some friends,’ he gestured to a VIP booth in the corner. ‘You have heard the legendary tale about Vampires and International Rock stars haven’t you?’
She folded her arms. ‘Enlighten me.’
‘Well, we’re both fiendishly handsome and we only come out at night.’
‘Right now, I’d take my chances with a Vampire.’
He put his hand across his heart. ‘Feel like you’ve just staked me in my heart.’
‘I should’ve done after that stunt you pulled tonight. What were you thinking and don’t give me the shit about ‘it was just playing to the crowd.’ That’s a cop out.’
‘Do you know what? I like you, most people around me are yes people, do whatever I want or say, you’re not like that, you have that scouse thing going on, like Magenta, it’s kinda hot.’
‘I get it, you want to get into Magenta’s pants, not gonna happen and don’t go around making a fool of her. She and Hunter are solid.’
He laughed out loud. ‘Oh babe, I’m not into Magenta, not in that way anyway, I love her like a friend. I knew they’d been shagging and I guess I was jealous.’
‘You just said you weren’t into her.’
‘I’m not, I just want what she has, someone at the side of the stage for me. I don’t want to split her and GI Joe up, I just want a bit of what they have.’
Now it was her turn to laugh. ‘C’mon Johnny, do you expect me to believe that? You want to settle down?’
He shrugged. ‘You don’t have to believe me, I just have to believe me. I see Magenta and see how happy she is and she’s still got her career so maybe everything I’ve been told about being in a serious relationship would ruin my career is shit. Look at Jon Bon Jovi, he’s managed an amazing career and be married and have kids.’
‘This isn’t Loose Women, I’m not interviewing you, I didn’t want an in-depth answer. You do owe Magenta an apology though.’
‘Yeah, you’re right, I know I’m a bit much some times. Look, let me get you a drink, you look like you need it and come inside, you’re cold,’ he reached out and placed his hand on her bare shoulder, her dress was sleeveless. His hand was warm against the chill of her skin. She hadn’t realised she was cold either, she shivered.
‘No, it’s OK. I should leave you to your friends.’
‘They can wait, let me at least make amends to you for the rocky start we’ve had.’
She let him lead her inside to the bar. ‘So, Scouse, what would you like to drink?’
‘I’m sorry, Scouse?’
‘That’s my nickname for you.’
‘Whatever floats ya boat. Bacardi and diet coke please Jon boy,’ she gave him a look. ‘That’s my nickname for you.’
He grinned. ‘I love it.’
She groaned inwardly, he wasn’t meant to love it, she was trying her best to not like him, he was a prize idiot with an over inflated ego all he was was his rock star persona, and yet…
‘So, what brought you out up to the rooftop tonight? The view?’
She took a sip of her drink and nodded.
‘Bullshit.’
‘OK, so you really wanna know?’
‘A problem shared and all that.’
‘I think my marriage is over,’ she picked up her glass and downed the drink in one. She placed the empty glass down and stood up to leave.
He placed his hand on her wrist whilst at the same time ordering a double Bacardi and diet coke. ‘Sit back down, I ain’t letting you go anywhere until I know you’re OK.’
She sank back down in her seat. ‘How can you ever be OK again when you find out your husband has been sending pictures of his knob to other women.’
‘Holy shit, stupid idiot,’ he picked up his own glass of Bourbon. ‘Time to get pissed I think.’
The following morning Trina woke up in a bed that wasn’t hers and in a suite that wasn’t hers either. Last night came back to her in dribs and drabs, Dean’s phone, the pictures, the rooftop bar, drinking with Johnny...and what next? She looked under the sheet, she was in a large T-shirt that wasn’t hers, her knickers were still on, but what the hell happened? Johnny stuck his head around the door. ‘Morning Scouse, was just gonna order room service, want anything? The Eggs Benedict are perfect for a hangover.’
‘Johnny, what did we…did we…?’
‘Relax, kid. You didn’t want to go back to your room, so I booked a suite, a two bedroom suite, I’ve been in the other room. I gave you my shirt to sleep in. I’m a lot of things, but I don’t take advantage of drunk, emotional women.’
She hadn’t realised she’d been holding her breath. ‘Oh thank God.’
‘Well. There’s a first, a women glad she hasn’t slept w
ith me. Not sure that’ll do my ego any good.’
‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean...’
‘S’ok I’m just messing with you.’
Her phone rang, it was Magenta. Before she could even say hello she heard the anguish in her friend’s voice. ‘T, I need you, can you get over here now?’
‘On my way.’
She ended the call and then noticed that her phone was going crazy with social media notifications relating to Magenta. She opened a link. ‘Oh Shit.’
CHAPTER NINE
L.A.
Max sat at a table in the deli at the end of his block. His breakfast was going cold, but he didn’t care, he was too busy soaking up the coverage on Magenta's meltdown last night in New York. He had to hand it to her, it was fairly spectacular and he hadn’t expected her to spiral so quickly.
He’d heard the song that was currently number one, he knew it was an old song of Magenta’s, therefore he knew that was the real reason for her temper getting the better of her and not Johnny kissing her on stage, the press had posted pictures of Magenta having a heated row with GI Joe. The press were reporting that they were arguing over Johnny and was something going on behind her boyfriends back? Then there was a clip that had been uploaded onto social media, it wasn’t great quality, it was from someone’s phone who had been a fair bit away from the action, but the sound quality was spot on and Magenta could clearly be heard swearing and shouting at those around her.
‘Magenta’s Meltdown’
‘Johnny and Magenta – an item?’
‘Mad Mags’
The press and fans on social media contemplated what might have been behind the ‘fiery redheads’ outburst’ as the press were referring to her now.
He chuckled to himself, she’d gone off like a rocket and this was only the beginning, he hadn’t even set the main part of his plan in motion yet. He picked up his coffee cup and took a slurp, he didn’t even care that it was tepid, there were more important things in life to focus on and right now, it was the fall of Magenta, she was starting to wobble and he couldn’t wait to see her fall from a great height.
