Well Rocked

by Clara Bayard

  “Not in the slightest. Just organized.” He slung an arm over my shoulder and we started walking toward the sidewalk. “Try it my way today, okay? We’ll just walk and see what we see?”

  “Okay, sure. That sounds fun.”

  “You mean it sounds terrible, I can tell. But you’ll like it, I promise.”

  I thought about all the things Dex and I had done. All the rules I’d broken to be with him. This was minor, and so far he’d been right. I’d been having the time of my life. So if he wanted to wander, I would wander. “All right. No plan, no map. Just fun.”

  “That’s my girl,” he said, leaning over to kiss me on the top of my head.

  I smiled and wrapped an arm around his waist. As long as we were together, I really didn’t care where were went or what we did. It would be wonderful.

  And it was. For a while. We strolled around; down streets I’d heard of and seen in movies and many I couldn’t even pronounce. Past amazing smells emanating from little shops, and groups of loud tourists. We stopped at a little flower stand and Dex got me a single, perfect rose. He snapped off the bloom and tucked it behind my ear after releasing my hair from its bun.

  I laughed at the cheese gesture, but secretly loved it. I was starring in my own romantic film and couldn’t stop smiling.

  Eventually we both needed a rest, so we found a little café and went inside. It was quintessential Paris, to me. Tiny tables full of lazy diners sipping drinks and nibbling at tiny pastries. We grabbed the last table outside, half under the awning, and sighed in unison.

  I laughed. “Wandering is tiring.”

  “So it seems. I could really use a pint right now.”

  “I doubt they serve beer here. Wine, maybe.”

  Dex shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. We can drink later.”

  Silently, I thanked him for saying that. I wanted a clear head for this whole wonderful experience and was glad to see he – at least for the moment – felt the same way.

  After poring over the menu we ordered coffees and a selection of…something. It cost a lot, so I was hoping for the best.

  Dex was leaning back in his seat with sunglasses shielding his eyes from the sun. He’d thoughtfully given me the chair in the shade. I loved seeing him like that. Relaxed and content, but totally present. Since we first met most of the time he was happy, there was a bottle in his hand. I had worried that the stress of his father’s illness and our visit there, coupled with the drama with me and Ryan would still be bothering him, but he seemed genuinely blissful and at peace.

  Of course, that only lasted a little while. By the time our drinks arrived I’d noticed a group of people down the street staring at us. Four girls a little younger than me and three guys around the same age, they were all dressed in trendy styles that looked just this side of sloppy. It was a look I’d seen a lot, and I knew it cost a lot of money to accomplish.

  After thanking the waiter, I leaned over to ask Dex about them. “See those people down there? They’re looking over here. Do you know them?”

  He turned his head and lifted his sunglasses to look. “Nope. Never seen them before.”

  “Hm.” I glanced over again and now they were huddled together, having what looked like a spirited debate.

  “Don’t worry, love. They probably just think you’re beautiful.”

  “Yeah, right.” I rolled my eyes and took a sip of my iced coffee. It was rich and delicious. “I hope they’re not autograph hounds or something.”

  “I doubt that.” He shoved the glasses into his pocket and leaned over to take my hand. “You’re not on duty today. Just have fun.”

  “I know. I just…”

  “Can’t help it. I noticed.” He flashed a dazzling grin that had me forgetting all about the people looking at us.

  Just then the waiter brought over our food. It was a tower of stunning desserts, a dozen different bite-size pieces of heaven. “Oh, wow,” was all I managed.

  Dex chuckled, but I could see his hand creeping close to the plate, itching to try something.

  Our eyes met and we both dug in. At first we aimed for nonchalant and civilized, but as each sweet confection exploded my taste buds, I soon found myself cramming them in as fast as I could chew.

  With his mouth full, Dex grinned at me.

  “Gross, honey,” I said.”

  “Sorry. But I needed to tell you this before I slip into a sugar coma.”

  “What?” I popped a tiny tart with a raspberry on top into my mouth.

  “We’re coming here for every meal, agreed?” He crunched down on a flaky pastry dripping with honey.

  “Deal.”

  In the middle of a dark chocolate something-or-other, I happened to look up and see that the randoms looking at us had moved. Now they were a few feet away, jostling each other, staring at us again.

  One of them broke off from the pack and walked closer, standing on the opposite side of the table next to us. The older couple sitting at the table glared at the girl, but she seemed oblivious. I was sure what she’d say even before she opened her mouth.

  “Are you Dex Winters?” she asked in an American accent.

  I sighed as Dex swallowed down whatever he was eating, and plastered on a smile.

  “I sure am.”

  “Oh my god. I knew it! How crazy is this, seeing you here. What are you doing?”

  He glanced over at me. “Just hanging. What’s your name?”

  “Jasmine. Um…look. I know this is really uncool, but would you take a picture with me and my friends? We’re huge fans.”

  Dex stood up. “Of course. I’d be happy to. But let’s move down a bit, yeah? Let these nice people enjoy their afternoon.”

  She nodded so vigorously I thought she might strain something. “Yeah, okay. Of course. Whatever you say.”

  While he ushered her away from the table, past all of the annoyed Parisians, I flagged down our waiter to get the check. Obviously the normal couple hanging out portion of the day was over.

  By the time I’d paid and followed Dex, he was in the middle of a rather elaborate photo shoot with the group. Each one wanted a picture alone with him, then one with some of their friends, then the rest.

  Eventually they ran out of configurations, until they spotted me. Half a dozen phones were shoved into my hands and they gathered in a clump for a group picture. I idly wondered where Mia was. This kind of thing would have been her job. But then I remembered she was the one who outed me and Dex to Ryan, and decided not to think about her at all anymore.

  I snapped a series of pictures and handed the phones back to their respective owners, only half listening to the conversation Dex was having with them. It was bitchy of me to be irritated, but I couldn’t help it. Fans or not, they were invading my time with Dex, and I hated that. Plus I knew he’d never be rude to them and we might end up standing on the sidewalk all day.

  A tall, skinny guy with sandy hair was asking Dex questions so fast I could barely understand him. “We saw on the news that you guys were in Paris, but we never thought we’d actually see you. Is the rest of the band here?”

  “No, just me and Becca.”

  “Oh, cool. Do you know where the other guys are? Don’t you all chill together all the time?”

  Dex chuckled. “We spend plenty of time together. I assume they’re off seeing the city or sleeping off last night, depending on the man.”

  “Ha, yeah, I bet. You guys sure know how to party. Say, we’re heading over to this bar we found yesterday. Do you wanna come along?”

  My eyes widened. “Isn’t it a little early for bars?”

  The guy laughed. “Not here. They drink all day. It’s cool. Plus we can all get served.”

  “Well that’s something to celebrate for sure,” Dex said. “Why not.”

  I glared at him briefly. “Dex, can I talk to you alone for a second?”

  He nodded and came over to me. But before I could remind him that we were supposed to be spending the day together, and that
I’d be working and with Liss the next day, I saw the rest of the group hear the news that Dex was going to hang out with them. Excitement was an understatement. I thought a few of them would overcome gravity they bounced so hard with happiness.

  With a sigh I looked at Dex. “Never mind.”

  He held my chin in one hand. “It’ll just be a few drinks, love. They told me they tried to get tickets to the show but couldn’t. An hour of my time is the least I can do for them.”

  “I know.”

  “Hey, I know this isn’t the romantic day you wanted. But we’ve got all night, right?”

  “Of course.”

  “You’re not cross?”

  I shook my head. And it was true. I was disappointed more than anything. And annoyed with myself for being so selfish. Without the fans there would have been no European tour and no job for me. I owed them just as much as the band did.

  That thought struck me hard, and I made a decision. “Look, why don’t you go with them. Have fun. I’ll go back to the hotel and get a little work done. That way we can have more time together later.”

  “You sure? I want you to come along.”

  “Nah, it’s fine. Be your charming self. I’ll be waiting for you.”

  “If you promise to be waiting naked I’ll tell these guys to bugger off in five minutes.”

  I laughed and slapped his arm. “Go be a rock star.”

  Chapter Four

  It was close to midnight before I saw Dex again, back at the hotel. He’d sent a text a few hours earlier, so I knew he was fine, just having too much fun and too many drinks to leave. Instead of having dinner with me and going to see the Eiffel Tower, he went on whatever the French version of a bar crawl is with a bunch of strangers.

  Sitting in my room alone, I’d sworn I wouldn’t yell at him. After all, his unpredictable nature and love of partying was part of what I liked about him, right? Hadn’t I just been relishing the way he dragged out of my comfort zone?

  As the hours wore on I couldn’t figure out if I was being unreasonable or not. To me it seemed rude and dismissive for him to bail like that. But I had told him to go have fun. And if I really wanted to spend time with him I could have called and asked him to come back, or offered to meet him somewhere. Hating the lack of clarity, I just stewed for a while. I only left my room to go down to the restaurant for a quick dinner. It was full of gorgeous couples mocking me with their happiness. What the hell was up with Paris, anyway, I wondered. Did they only allow beautiful people to move into the city and breed?

  In full grump mode, I went back upstairs. I spent a little time working – returning emails and checking logistics for the Paris shows and travel arrangements for the rest of the tour. Normally, going down my list, rechecking and confirming would make me feel better. This time it just annoyed me more.

  So, by the time Dex knocked on my door, I was a mass of irritation. I let him in and was immediately enveloped in a tight hug. He stank like cigarettes and booze, reminding me of my father.

  When I was little he’d get home late and always come in to kiss me goodnight. Sometimes it soothed me, the scent of his lifestyle wafting through the air when he opened my bedroom door, lingering on my pillow when he bent to kiss my forehead. But as I got older than smell came to represent everything I was missing. My dad was a visitor in my life at best, even though I lived with him.

  And now, after hours of waiting for Dex, I couldn’t get that thought out of my mind, that I was falling for a man just like my father. Was this my future with him? Sitting at home, waiting for him to come back and kiss me goodnight?

  “God, I’ve missed you,” he said into my hair.

  I pulled out of the hug and went back to sit on the bed. “How was your night?”

  “Lovely. Don’t let the fancy fool you. This city is full of real drinkers.” He sauntered over and threw himself down on the bed next to me, stretching out. “Are we sleeping in here tonight?”

  I answered through gritted teeth. “I am.”

  “Where you go, I go, love.”

  It took every ounce of control I had not to scoff at that, considering how we’d spent our respective evenings.

  “Look, I’m tired. I just want to get some rest. I’ve got a lot to do tomorrow before I go shopping with Liss.”

  He shrugged and rolled over to face me. “That’s all right. But if you just want to sleep, do you mind if I go out for a while? I’m a bit restless tonight.”

  “Sure, fine. I guess I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Dex sat up. He looked at me for a while with his head cocked to the side. “Yeah, okay. How about a goodnight kiss?”

  “Of course.” I was annoyed with him, but that didn’t keep me from wanting him. As our lips met I considered changing my mind. Convincing him to stay with me in bed, make him forget about partying or anything except how hot we were together.

  But as the taste of liquor transferred from his mouth to mine, it smothered the rising heat inside me. I broke off the kiss and said goodbye.

  Dex got up and headed for the door. He turned back. “You okay, love?”

  “Yes. Just tired.”

  His eyes narrowed for a moment, but then he shrugged again and turned away.

  I sat on the bed by myself for a long time after the door slammed behind him, wondering how one day could change how I felt so much.

  * * *

  The next afternoon I was at another café. This one was noticeably less fancy than the one I’d visited with Dex, but I didn’t mind. Liss and I were sitting outside the tiny place that I imagined was quite a popular dive bar at night. She was having a glass of red wine to steady her nerves, and I was sipping a coffee.

  “How wild is this, Becca?”

  I smiled. “What, the two of us having a drink a block away from the Moulin Rouge, or you getting ready to get your first tattoo?”

  Her face paled. “Both, I guess. I’m trying not to think about the torture. I mean – the tattoo.”

  I laughed. “It really isn’t that bad. It doesn’t feel good or anything, but it’s survivable.”

  “Well I hope so. Joe would be pretty pissed if I died getting some ink without even telling him.”

  “Why are you keeping it a secret? Planning to get his name across your ass?”

  She sputtered, choking on a sip of wine. “No. To be honest, I wasn’t going to tell anyone, in case I chickened out. But when I called they told me I had to have a consultation first, which made me feel better. And then after I checked it out yesterday, I was feeling a bit braver. But I still might run away. I figured you wouldn’t tell on me.”

  “Of course not. Though, if I were you I’d be more worried about getting inked up at a place named after a cartoon character.”

  She grinned. “That is not helping. But seriously, were you scared when you got yours?”

  I rubbed my shoulder over the t-shirt that covered my ink. “Not really. Everyone I knew growing up had lots of them, though. Even the wusses. So I figured I could take it.”

  Liss giggled. “I clearly brought the right person. If Joe was with me I don’t know what he’d do. Either tease me mercilessly or punch the guy if I looked like I was in pain. Either way, I’m glad he’s not here.”

  “Me too. And even though this isn’t exactly the shopping trip I was hoping for, it’s great to spend some time away from the boys.”

  She sighed and slouched down in her seat. “I hear that. Don’t tell, but part of the reason I’m on this trip is to get it out of my system. I figured a couple of weeks trapped with the whole gang would leave me dying to start school at the end of next month.”

  I nodded.

  “Shit,” she continued. “You almost got fired. Probably not the time to make jokes about getting away from all of this.”

  “It’s okay. It was hard, but at least I don’t have to lie anymore about Dex and me.”

  Something in my voice must have clued her in that things weren’t exactly perfect. She leaned over and
put her hand over mine. “Are you okay?”

  “Sure.”

  “Come on. Even terrified as I am, I can see something’s wrong. Do you want to talk about it?”

  “Not really. I mean, yeah, I’d love your opinion. But I’m worried I’ll seem like a bitch.”

  “We haven’t known each other very long, but I know you’re not a bitch. It’s something about Dex? Just tell me.”

  I crossed my arms and looked down at the table. “Yeah.”

  “Did you have a fight?”

  “Not exactly.” I went on to explain everything that had happened yesterday. Talking about it made me even more annoyed.

  “Uh-huh, that’s a tough one,” Liss said once I was finished. “Neither one of you really did anything wrong, but I can see why you’re upset with him.”

  “It isn’t like I expect him to spend every free second with me. But…I don’t know. I guess it just reminded me that things aren’t as perfect as they seemed.”

  She smiled. “Now that I completely understand. It’s easy to get carried away in the fairytale of this. The sexy rocker and the regular girl. But this is real. They’re real people, not fictional princes. If you forget that, you’re bound to be disappointed, if not crushed.”

  “Hm, yeah. You’re right. And I’m not naïve. I know he cares for me. But there’s a darkness in him. Damage I can relate to, but don’t really understand. He hides it well, and sometimes I forget.”

  “Dex is a good guy.”

  “Of course. I know that. He’s amazing. But, I just worry. It’s only been a few days since he went to see his dad, and he’s pretending it never happened. I know he must be thinking about it, but he doesn’t say a word.”

  “Did you ask him?”

  “No. I don’t want to push. And there’s been enough drama lately.”

  “Now that is an understatement. Did you see our faces all over the television?”

  “Ugh, yes. Don’t remind me. I’m just glad no one caught the scene I made.”

  Liss smiled and finished her glass of wine. “Dex said you really laid into him.”

  “I did. I was…really upset.”

  “I can imagine. Hey, speaking of upset. What the hell is up with Mia? Do you know why she narced on you?”