I smiled back and said, “I’m glad you understand. Maybe Hal should pick another girl from his ‘stable of stars’.”
Brooklyn suddenly looked stern, “You don’t get it, do you? You don’t turn Hal Winters down and expect to keep getting gigs in this town. It wasn’t a request. He’s wanting you to go to this party to create buzz for your band. Everybody’s going to want to know who that girl is with Tommy. Your picture and band’s name will be splashed across every tabloid and gossip magazine around the world. You couldn’t ask for better publicity.”
I sat there and thought a moment. The thought of being some guy’s date to a party, even if he was a big, huge celebrity, made me ill. On the other hand, Mom would kill me if I passed up this opportunity for publicity for the band. But then, I know John would be totally pissed about me getting even more special treatment. Especially while he’s pulling another long night at the studio to get the album out.
I looked Brooklyn straight in her eyes and said, “So. What do I wear?”
* * *
Chapter 5
The phone rang. Brooklyn Farrell answered it. She listened for a moment, then said simply, “Thank you.” Giggling, she hung up.
“Who was it?” I asked. “What did they say?”
“It was the front desk. They said a limo is here to pick up Ms. Grayson. Are you ready?”
I stood in front of the full length mirror and took inventory of myself.
The party was a formal affair. Brook picked a short, black satin, high necked gown that didn’t reveal cleavage (since I don’t have any) and didn’t reveal a whole lot of back. I had to wear an odd looking strapless bra that I discreetly stuffed with gym socks when Brook wasn’t looking. The bra was held on with adhesive strips that I was worried about falling off. Brook assured me they wouldn’t. I also had to wear what I thought were ridiculously high heels. The heels were three inches high, but I have good balance and it only took a few steps to figure out how not to fall down.
Brook had rented some jewelry after I had decided to go the party. I can’t imagine what it must cost to buy. Just renting it was expensive enough! There was a simple diamond necklace, and matching bracelet, and dangly diamond earrings. As she helped me with the necklace, she warned me not to lose any of the jewelry.
Brooklyn left my hair alone but touched up my make-up for me.
I looked at myself in the mirror and marveled at what I saw. I couldn’t see any of me at all. All I saw was a decked out gorgeous teen girl. I struck various poses with Brooklyn nodding approvingly behind me.
“I know you’re still young and all, but you need to grow some tits, girl.” Brook said, frowning.
Oddly, I found myself agreeing with her as I looked at my pitiful bust line.
She handed me the matching purse, which was uselessly small, and said, “You need to go.” She handed me a room key, a small cell phone, a compact and a lipstick to put in the purse, which was pretty much all you could put in it.
I was suddenly extremely nervous. Just what the hell was I doing? Just the thought of going to a big Hollywood party was intimidating enough for a small town boy like me, but to be going as a girl and especially as someone’s date, it was all too much.
Brooklyn must have seen the sudden deer-in-the-headlights look as she said, “Don’t worry, Michelle. You’ll be fine! You’re going to have a great time. Just think of how jealous all your girlfriends back home will be when you tell them about all the celebs you partied with!” Yeah, just think…
Brooklyn then hurried me to the door, “You better get going. Knock ‘em dead, girl!”She took a step back and looked me over one more time. “Ohhh, I wish I could be there to see you make your entrance. Every eye will be on you!”
As I opened the door, I said, “Ah, knock it off! That’s just crazy.”
Suddenly, the door closed and then it was, just my little black dress, high heels and me standing alone in the hallway. I walked carefully towards the elevator. I pushed the button and stepped back.
I whacked my forehead with my purse and said to myself, “I can’t believe I’m going to do this! I’m nuts! Nuts! Nuts!” I whacked myself with the purse each time I thought “Nuts!”In a panic I whipped out the compact and did a quick check of my make-up. “That’s all I need to do is mess up my face just before a date!”
An abrupt fury caused me to kick the door frame of the elevator and I yelled out loud, “Now I know I’m insane!”
Just then, the elevator doors slide open. Thank God it was empty. I stepped inside and punched the button for the first floor.
I cautiously exited the lobby of the hotel and stepped into the fading light of the setting sun. There was a smartly dressed chauffeur who tipped his hat and asked in a quiet voice, “Ms. Grayson?”
I said simply, “Yes.” The chauffeur smiled and opened the limo door.
At that moment, out stepped Tommy Kincaid, dressed to the nines in a tux, hair neatly combed and teeth sparkling. He said, “Miss Grayson, it’s most definitely a pleasure to meet you!”
I was suddenly totally flustered. I couldn’t believe I was actually standing there, being addressed by a big Hollywood star! I looked down at my feet for a moment, then back up to Tommy and said, “It’s very nice meeting you too, Mr. Kincaid.”
With a dismissing wave of his hand, he said, “Please, call me Tommy. May I call you Michelle?”
I said, “Sure!”
He smiled and motioned towards the car, “Shall we go?”
Quite the gentleman, he took my hand to steady me as I stepped into the limo. The inside of Tommy’s limo made the one we rode in to the studio look like an old taxi. The seats were the softest leather I’ve ever felt, and there was a movie playing on the flat panel television screen. Just about anything you could imagine being in a limousine was here.
I didn’t want to look like a hick in the city for the first time, but still, I gushed as I said, “Wow. This is really nice!”
Tommy smiled and said, “Hey, nothing but the best!”
The seats faced each other and Tommy sat opposite me. After a pause, he said, “At first, I have to admit, I was somewhat concerned when Hal said he’d found an escort. I see now there was no need to worry. You are absolutely beautiful.” His gaze bored into me.
I felt myself blushing. This was too embarrassing for me. I smiled weakly and did a quick look out the window. I looked back at him and forced myself to say, “Thank you. You’re very handsome yourself.”
Tommy smiled broadly, leaned forward in his seat and said, “Hal tells me you’re with an up-and-coming new band.”
Finally, back to my comfort zone, “Yes,” I replied. “It’s called John Gray’s Band named after, well, John Gray, the lead singer.”
Tommy looked thoughtful for a moment then said, “Gray. Grayson?”
Remembering our cover story, I said, “Yes, we’re related… somehow. Cousins.”
Tommy nodded, “I guess being in a band is exciting. What kind of music do you guys play?”
I was getting more comfortable. “Yeah! It is exciting. I’m a fairly new member though and since being here, I’ve hardly been in the studio… I’ve been mostly shopping and going to salons.” Tommy smiled knowingly. I’m sure his thoughts were along the lines of ‘Of course that’s what you’d be doing. You’re a girl.’
Continuing, I said, “We play mostly Rock with kind of a gritty edge to it. I have a solo that’s kinda country sounding.”
Tommy raised an eyebrow and said, “Oh, you like country?”
I shook my head, “Not really. Hal wanted me to sing it. But actually, it is a nice song.”
Before Tommy could make a reply, the limo pulled up to the curb and stopped. I looked out the car window towards the hotel hosting the party. I just wanted to die, right then and there. There was a wall of reporters and photographers, as well as a multitude of Tommy’s fans lining the short walk into the hotel.
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I can’t do this, I thought to myself. I leaned towards the glass and camera flashes started going off. Oh God, there’s no way I can do this!
Apparently reading my thoughts, Tommy gently took my hand and said soothingly, “Don’t worry. You’ll be okay. Just stick close to me. You need to get used to this anyway.” He looked at me and said seriously, “You’re going to be a star. I just know it.”
The driver opened the limo door and Tommy stepped out to a thunderous roar from the waiting fans. I started to physically shake. I thought I was going to throw up.
I watched Tommy wave for a moment to his fans and to the photographers. He then extended his hand to me. I hesitated a moment, then reached up and took his hand and he gently guided me through the door putting one leg out the door first, and trying to keep my legs together as I stood. I was trying probably too hard to be graceful.
The moment I stepped out, more cameras went off and girls screamed for Tommy. We walked quickly towards the hotel entrance as cameras flashed and fans yelled. Tommy took it all in stride, but it seemed so surreal to me.
While he ignored most of the reporters who shouted out questions, Tommy stopped in front of one camera and several microphones were shoved into his face. A reporter shouted out, “Happy birthday, Tommy! When’s your next movie coming out?”
Tommy smiled and said, “Thanks. It’s scheduled for a June release.”
“Any truth to the rumor that you’re shooting a sit-com pilot?”
“Who’s your new girlfriend?”
“Is it true you’re gay?”
“What’s your next project?”
“Where’s your girlfriend, Jennifer?”
“Are you worried about PETA’s call for a boycott of you?”
“Is it true that you beat Jennifer?”
Tommy just smiled, waved and said, “Absolutely not. Sorry guys. But we need to be getting inside. They’re having a surprise party for me.”A cacophony of reporters and fans erupted as Tommy waved to the crowd and led me inside.
As we passed through the entrance and the sounds of the crowd faded, I couldn’t help but think, Hey! You didn’t mention the band, or me, or anything. I thought I was here for the publicity?
A man in a tux was standing in the lobby. He smiled briefly and bowed slightly, “Mr. Kincaid, they’re waiting for you in the Ballroom. Walk this way.”
I looked around at the fancy hotel. Tommy’s head never looked left or right. I probably looked like a gawking tourist, but I didn’t care.
Tommy still held my hand and was walking a little too fast for a high heel newbie. My heel caught in the carpet, and I took a lurch forward and started to lose my balance. Tommy quickly turned and caught and held me, my nose barely an inch from his.
“Are you okay Michelle?” Tommy asked genuinely concerned. “I’m sorry. I guess I was dragging you along, wasn’t I?” I nodded. He helped me stand back up straight. “We’ll keep a more dignified pace.”
He took my hand once more and led me, more slowly, towards the Ballroom. As we made our grand entrance, there was applause and cheers, and at first, all eyes were on Tommy. Then, mere moments later, every eye was focused on me. The men smiled and the women looked at me suspiciously. It was very unsettling.
There was a DJ there and he called out, “Now that the main event has arrived, it’s time to make this party ROCK!” He screeched out the last word so loud, the sound system went into distortion and a brief squeal of feedback. The music then cranked up.
Tommy looked at me and said, “Would you like to dance?”
I wanted to say no way, but I guess it’d make him look bad, so I said, “I’d love to!”
Still holding my hand, Tommy led me to an open spot in front of the DJ and then started gyrating and shaking. I followed along and hoped I looked more convincing than Tommy did.
As the song began to end, Tommy shouted to me, “Hungry?”
I nodded. The song ended and he led me over to the buffet table. There was tons of food on it along with a variety of non-alcoholic drinks. Since there were a lot of under-aged celebrities here and the studio execs were watching their tails, there was a bar at one end of the ballroom where the adults could get something stronger.
As I nosed through the unidentifiable items at the buffet table, a woman walked up to Tommy.
“Happy birthday, Tommy!”she cooed. “How are you these days? I haven’t talked to you since we were both in that dreadful The Sheep Look Up.”
Tommy laughed and said, “I’ve been doing fine, Rachel. Yourself?”
“I’ve been keeping busy. Aren’t you going to introduce me to your lovely friend?”
“Yes, of course! Honey? I’m sure you recognize Rachel Carson. Rachel, this is Michelle Grayson. She’s here making an album.”He draped an arm over my shoulder.
Did that rat bastard just call me ‘honey’? The contact of his arm made my skin crawl. I didn’t know what to do. Do I just stand there or do I do something to get rid of his arm? I decided that it would probably look bad for both of us if I moved away.
“Yes,” I said. “The name of the band I’m with is called ‘John Gray’s Band’.” There, I said it. Can I go home now?
Rachel extended her hand and I shook it, remembering that girls always give uncomfortable, limp handshakes. She said, “Well, good luck with it dear. I’ll look forward to hearing it.” I’ll bet.
That’s the way it went for the next hour or so. Meeting fake people with fake sentiments interspersed with dancing with Tommy. I finally, had to go look for a restroom. After relieving myself, I stood there, trying to spot Tommy.
As I was looking, a girl’s voice from behind said, “Hello.” I turned around and saw an extremely pretty girl with hair down to her waist. She could have been anywhere between my age and 20. She was wearing a very short sequined dress with a very plunging neck line.
“Hello.” I said to her breasts. When I looked at her face, I recognized her. She was on some soap opera and was trying to break into movies. I had watched the soap a few times just to ogle at her. “Julia Briggs! I’m a big fan!”She smiled and gave me a questioning look. Embarrassed, I added, “I’m Michelle Grayson.”
“Hi Michelle,” she said. “I noticed you came in with Tommy. Known him long?”
I shook my head. “We just met. He’s really nice though. Not plastic at all.”She nodded and then I added with a laugh, “He’s a great dancer, too!”
She smiled again and said, “Yes, he is.”She took a sip of her drink and said, “I heard that you’re with a band and that you’re making an album. Are you in town long?”
“That’s right!” I chirped. “It’s John Gray’s Band. We’re leaving Saturday. We have to have the album wrapped up by Friday night.”
“Oh really? That’s too bad. This will probably be the only party you get to go to while you’re here. But you’ll be back, won’t you?”She was staring at me pretty intently. I didn’t mind as she was easily the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen. At least up close.
“Yeah, we will. They’re going to have us make a video and some local gigs here and a brief concert tour all this summer. That’s not too far away.”
She smiled and said, “Well, you’ll have to let me know when you’re back in town. I’d love to come watch your band play.”
Before I could answer, I felt an arm go around my waist and from directly behind me, Tommy said, “Oh, there you are! I was wondering where you went.”
“Hello, Tommy,“ Julia said. “Happy birthday. I was just getting to know your latest girlfriend. She’s very nice. Not at all like that Jennifer what’s-her-face.”
Tommy looked embarrassed at the mention of Jennifer. Their stormy breakup was the talk of celebrity news lately. He regained his composure and said, “Yeah, Michelle is very nice and a very good dancer I might add.” He squeezed my hand and gave me a quick hug, placing his cheek against mine. I had
to force myself not to throw up.
Julia said, “Well, there’re some other folks I should probably go talk to. It was very nice to meet you, Michelle. Maybe we can have a cappuccino sometime before you have to leave. Again Tommy, happy birthday!”And with that, she walked away and Tommy and I started walking back to the un-crowded dance floor.
Tommy was looking at me oddly. He said, “Can I ask you a personal question? You don’t have to answer.”
I shrugged and said, “Sure, ask away.”
He cleared his throat and said, “It may not be any of my business, and the only reason we met was because of Hal, but I was just curious…”He hesitated a moment before continuing, “Ah, are you straight?”
Whoa. I certainly wasn’t expecting that question. I had to think about that answer. I’m straight, but with my injury, I’ll never be able to do anything about it. I definitely like girls, but he wasn’t really asking me… he was asking Michelle. Saying Michelle was straight meant that she preferred guys. If I answered honestly about my personal preferences, I’d be going counter to the image Mr. Winters and Mom was working on creating for the band.
I laughed and looked Tommy in the eye as I said, “Oh, definitely straight!” An obvious look of relief crossed his face.
“Well, you might want to stay clear of Julia then. She’s very lesbian.” He paused a moment before adding, “Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”
That’s just peachy, I thought. A really hot babe is finally interested in me, but only because I’m a girl. I looked across the room and saw Julia talking to a couple of other girls. I said, “I’ll try to remember that.”
We got back on the dance floor. I never really cared anything about dancing before. But I have to admit, I was actually enjoying dancing with Tommy. It’s not like we were really dancing together where we had to touch each other and all. But without Tommy, I think I’d just feel silly dancing alone.
After the dance, Tommy led me to a table where we sat down. We chatted for a few minutes, and then he got up to go get us something to drink. I was watching Tommy walk away, and so I didn’t notice when someone walked up to the table.
I'm with the Band Page 6
