by A. J. Sand
Uh, that definitely wasn’t what she had been thinking. “Abe…” Erica said as she laid her head on his shoulder. “You really think love is big enough to conquer anything?”
Abel rested his head against hers. “Nope. But it sure as hell makes you want to try.”
A Night to Remember – Chapter 7
Below an inky sky, the streets of West Hollywood were soaked in the florescence of gigantic billboards and an infinite strip of immobile red taillights. Excitement coursing through her, Erica squeezed Abel a little tighter around the waist as they swerved through the cars trudging toward Sunset Boulevard. She loved Saturday nights in this part of L.A. And as a native, she shouldn’t have been so captivated by the shiny things here, but she couldn’t help herself, especially after daydreaming about it for so much of her childhood.
As they neared the Sunset Strip, more pedestrians were coming into view on the sidewalks and outside of parking lots: girls in platform heels and body-hugging dresses, and guys in leather jackets and jeans strolling along the famous street. Hopefully, they were all headed for Luz and not the other bars and clubs. Abel slowed his bike when the live music venue rose ahead of them, and fitting its name, the rectangular panels on the front of the building, stretching high above, were flashing in a rhythm of luminous colors. She smiled when a picture of Fading Fast lit up one side of an LED sign. This place was historic for Los Angeles music because so many renowned music legends had performed here—and so had some then up-and-comers who had gone on to become pretty famous—and she thought it would be a great place to jumpstart a career.
Abel dropped her off after some time spent refusing the dollars she stuffed into his hand for parking, and she surveyed the line outside, satisfied. She’d seen Luz before with more people than the fire code allowed, and this hadn’t reached that yet, but it was decent for a show with unknowns. Erica had called in every owed favor from every friend, famous and not, within a thousand mile radius, to not only show up but also bring at least three friends. And she had hung out enough at Luz as a teen to develop a relationship with the management, even as it changed, so she expected that they had invited their network, too. Shouts of her name came out from every direction, and Erica ruminated on how much she loved her choice of work.
There were tons of familiar faces: Gabi and her friends, some guys she knew through Wes and Abel, musician friends of Kai’s, old friends from modeling, Ashley, Kai’s tour manager was there with some of her friends, and so was Adam Scott, a friend of Chase and Jeremy’s. There was an uptick in her heart rate when her glance briefly collided with Adam’s, but she had anticipated the appearance of at least one of her foes. No more running. As long as he stayed out of her way, they could exist in the same space.
She waved to Fitz and Carlos, who were in a part of the line with such a massive glut of people that it bulged away the building, nearly spilling into the street. And from the looks of the disgruntled patrons nearby, the two guys had simply permitted their friends—a lot of them—to join them in that spot rather than urging them to take the courteous option of going to the end of the line. She’d made sure they had gotten VIP entry, so this was clearly just Fitz being obnoxious.
Rolling to her tiptoes, she searched for Bryson and the people he often hung out with. Her heart plummeted when she didn’t see him, but she reminded herself that the line extended down farther than she could see. But she imagined that he would’ve stayed near the front until she arrived. So he probably wasn’t there. Where the hell are you, Bryce? Erica thought as she scrolled through her text messages and missed calls. It was mostly people wishing her good luck or procrastinators pleading for tickets. She rested her hope on the thought that his arrival was imminent, especially with the lack of an apologetic, cancellation text.
Ashley left her place in line and came up to Erica. She didn’t know her well because she had been in the process of quitting her job with Kai’s company when Ashley was hired as his tour manager. Dylan had told her a few stories about their tension during Kai’s tour last year, but she’d become friends with some of her friends, so Erica decided she would give her a chance.
“Hey, thanks for coming, but what are you doing here? How come you’re not on tour?” Erica asked.
Ashley pushed her blunt bangs out of her eyes. “Oh…J.Kutch has, like, a hierarchy of tour managers, so Kai’s taken care of on the road. I’m sort of handling things virtually right now through the company here in L.A.” She pressed out a flat smile. “So, people really came out for you tonight. I didn’t realize you were really back on the PR circuit until Kai sent me the tickets.”
“Dipping my toe in,” Erica said. “Yeah.”
“Are you planning to come back and work for him?”
“We’re ‘in talks,’” she teased. “But it is looking like I’m going to be an employee again, sort of. Which means we should probably talk soon.”
“Yeah…sure…” Ashley said in a flippant tone. “Is Dylan here? I’d love to see her. We haven’t spoken in a while.”
Erica fought the impulse to raise her brows. Yeah, there’s probably a really good reason for that. “No, she’s not. And I’ve got to run, but I hope you have a great night.” She started for the door but a shout of her name stopped her short of it. Shit. Matt waved to her from the line running down along the other side of Luz. Shit. Shit. Shit. Seriously? Of all places? Of all places in this entire city?
Her heart raged beneath the calm smile she prepped as she walked toward him. But finally, she got to see him without the workout clothes, and clean-shaven and in his light-colored jeans and button-down plaid shirt, he looked amazing. The two clumps of people on either side of him were having energetic conversations without him, so it was clear that he was alone. He’d mentioned friends earlier, and she wondered if he was meeting them here. Not that there was anything wrong with going out alone; maybe he needed to do this.
“Apartment clean enough for you to still be out?” she joked, clapping him on the arm.
“Yeah! First time for everything, right?” Matt pulled her into a hug, and with his hands clutching her hips, and his lips brushing her ear, he added, “And you exist outside of yoga clothes. So, this is what I’ve been missing out on, huh, E?”
“Well, I barely recognized you without track pants,” she teased when they pulled apart.
“Well, I spotted you the minute you got here,” he whispered, and he reached out and squeezed her hand for a second. And even after his hand fell away, his eyes didn’t. “Um…you… you look beautiful.”
“She does, doesn’t she…?” Abel smirked as he approached them, and he stood at her side without acknowledging her at all, his narrow eyes inspecting Matt. When Matt pivoted to face him, Abel took a more shielding stance, angling his body in a way that partially blocked her from his sight. Christ. Erica stepped back in view.
“This is Abel,” she said, gesturing at him, but she smacked him on the back, too. “Matt. From yoga.”
Matt held his hand out, but Abel didn’t even pretend he was interested in shaking it as he kept his dubious expression fixed on him. Score one for Team Bryson.
Abel’s lips shifted into a callous smile. “Whatever you’re—”
“We’ll see you inside,” Erica said as she pulled him by the collar toward the entrance, preventing his presumably hostile words.
“We won’t, though, so don’t actually make any plans!” Abel shouted at him in their wake. He swung his head to the side to look at Matt for a moment, and his arm formed a protective clamp around her shoulders. But Erica agreed with him in silence. She wanted to reconnect with Bryson without Matt hovering around. She didn’t want to hurt him, because she cherished their new friendship, but she was certain that they would never develop into what he wanted. Her heart would never truly make room for it.
Erica blew out a breath. What a night this would be! This is how you wanted your life, right? Unpredictable and fast paced? After a short chat with the bouncer, she and Abel slipped
inside. Besides the lavish VIP lounge upstairs, Luz’s interior hadn’t been remodeled much over the years, so it still had nearly the same look as what was documented in the large photos on the wall of legendary singers performing there in decades past: aged floors and walls, and a warehouse feel. Except for staff, media and the talent, the place was empty. Before she could slip away to start working, Abel pulled her aside, not quite ready to abandon his problems with Matt.
“He’s in yoga with you? Like actually in the class? Or hanging out outside checking out asses in yoga pants?” He pressed his lips together in distaste.
“Christ, Abel, he’s in the class.”
“So he’s in the class checking out asses then? And, apparently, he likes checking out yours in dresses, too. I caught him looking when we were walking in.” Abel smirked. “That’s not to say yours isn’t worth looking at…”
She gasped. “Abel,” she warned, lightly slapping his face.
“What? That’s a compliment! I can tell you’re a girl who knows the long-term benefits of lunges and squats!” He shrugged, somewhere between indignant and oblivious. “And stop trying to change the subject!”
Erica snorted and rolled her eyes, slapping his other cheek. “Oh, yeah, this discussion about my butt is all part of my secret and diabolical plot to distract you from Matt. How ever did you piece that conspiracy together, Abel Elliott?” she teased in a tone where her sarcasm was blatant.
“He knows you’re with Bryson, right?”
She didn’t even know that yet. “Says the guy who has apparently been checking out my ass for years. And I put the brakes on it, Abe. We’re just friends.” She smiled. He was kind of adorable when he was like this.
“He doesn’t look like he just wants to be friends with you, E.”
“Doesn’t matter. I’ve made my decision, remember? And besides, what I need you to do tonight is keep an eye out for that private investigator since you’ll be sober.” But it was a request for which she didn’t have a lot of faith in its success. Lots of people would be taking pictures of her, and watching her and Luz attracted folks of all ages. And the hard truth was that all the women coming tonight would distract Abel from the task in a few hours, anyway. “Adam is here. Think you can avoid him or anybody connected to him tonight…please…for me? I need this night to go off without a hitch. If something happens, alert a bouncer. No going rogue, Abel, I mean it.”
Abel kept his expression noncommittal, which worried her, as he strolled away to the bar. “Save a dance for me, okay?”
“I’m saving a bunch of ‘em.”
She’d set up a mini meet-and-greet for the bloggers and Fading Fast to give them an opportunity for a brief introduction, and it certainly wouldn’t hurt their reviews to make sure the people writing them had prime viewing of the stage. After some small talk with the media alone, she summoned Fading Fast over and monitored their interviews, but Erica was having a hard time managing her impatience and disappointment about Bryson. After staring at the empty screen of her cell for a few seconds, a still optimistic Erica typed out a message to him: Hope you’re still coming. Can’t wait to see you.
As she shuffled the group outside for pictures, she saw Abel give her a thumbs-up signal as though he could read her mind when he halted his flirtation with a female bartender. As other musicians arrived, she made sure Fading Fast ended up in pictures with all of them. Once the group was done with their promotional activities, the waiting throng was unleashed inside, so charged up with nighttime energy, and soon was either occupying much of the space in front of the stage or migrating to the bar areas.
Erica raced to the bar, herself, when a wave of jitters rolled through her. Time for a drink.
“There she is! The woman who made this all happen!” Fitz shouted as she approached, and he lifted her into a hug before introducing her to some of the people who were in attendance. He had really come through in a big way based on the frenetic mob at the bar. It was a mix of college students and post-college faces, and far more women than men. She wasn’t even sure he knew most of the people standing there, but he had gotten them to show up, so she had no reason to complain. He had even abandoned his preppy look, opting for dark jeans, a black cotton t-shirt and a light jacket.
“Glad you could come out, guys,” she said and she reached out to shake as many hands as she could in presidential fashion. She still didn’t have business cards, but who needed one when Fitz was around and incredibly loud?
“Time for a toast!” Abel shouted as he appraised the women in Fitz’s entourage. His gaze finally settled on a cute brunette, and she scanned him with a demure expression in sharp contrast to Abel’s devilish one. As usual, Erica ordered her own drink (two, actually; it was a double fisting kind of a night), and a soda for Abel alongside Carlos when he went to get a round for everyone. Part of the publicity for the group tonight were the two half-priced drinks called the Fading Donnie and the Fast Casi, but Abel had somehow convinced the bartender to name a drink after her as well. As she waited for the drinks, she spotted Matt on the other side of the bar, sitting alone. Well, she was his friend, even if Abel didn’t like it, and he shouldn’t have been hanging out by himself, especially if he didn’t want to. It wasn’t like Bryson was there yet, and no matter what, they’d be in the same room together, anyway. She motioned at him with her head and lifted her drink to signal that they were toasting. But Matt declined with a kind smile, even after she offered again.
Once everyone was properly armed with a cup, Erica initiated the raising. “To a successful night. For them…” She ticked her head over to the stage. “…And for me.”
“To a night of endless possibilities…and breakfast…” Abel said, casting a flirty look at the brunette. “…And then round two or three depending on stamina.” Like instinct, her free hand connected with the back of his head.
“To the wondrous joy of having you in my family and not actually being blood related,” Fitz said to Erica with a wink, to which she responded promptly with a playful scowl. They all lifted their arms higher, touching cups, before downing their drinks. Whoa. The one named after her had a bit of the edge she needed to calm down. Either that or her insides had just become incendiary.
“Hey, any word from Bryson yet?” Abel whispered as the crowd dispersed and Erica downed her second drink.
“Nope, but you know what? It was just an invitation. Nothing set in stone or required, you know. And maybe something work-related came up,” she said, adding a shrug, but not quite able to struggle past her disappointment to convince Abel she was really that casual about it; she could see his doubt about her attitude in his eyes. Maybe you were wrong. Love isn’t big enough.
“Yeah, maybe…” Abel’s gaze touched the phone in his hand for a second. “You want me to—”
“No,” she said with a stern raising of her voice, “don’t worry about me. You’re already eye-fucking that girl, so you might as well go introduce yourself. Have fun tonight, okay? I’m going to be too busy making sure this night is a success to wonder about who’s here and who isn’t.” Yeah, right. Erica sliced through the mass and it ate her up before Abel had a chance to object.
There were so many unattended drinks and so many people getting other people’s drinks. This would’ve been a prime night for her to exhibit her Captain Vigilance tendencies if she weren’t working, but she decided she’d try to look out for anything strange, anyway. Erica meandered through the shadows with a photographer in tow to capture her in action. These would be promotional material for her future website. This was her time to engage with future clients and references, so lots of cheek kissing, gossipy chats, standard small talk and any other way she needed to schmooze. This was one of the best parts of the job, the connecting with people even for just a moment. But she knew she was the star tonight in other ways, too. It was hard to forget that someone else was in there watching her for Chase and Jeremy’s nefarious purposes. Still need to live my life. I’m back here to live my life. And
right now, she wanted to be bold and make a statement that she wasn’t afraid and wasn’t going to hide.
As the lights on the stage rose, Erica, acting purely on the thrill of spontaneity, scrambled for the microphone. Yeah, douchebag, whoever you are, I’m right here. A few hoots from the crowd made her blush as she wetted her lips. “Hi, everybody. Long time, no see. A lot of you know me already, but for those who don’t, I’m Erica—” lots of cheers went up, but a concentrated group of people exactly where she had been standing at the bar erupted into boisterous hoorays—“and this is the first event put on by E. Evigan, PR—” Another interruption from the same place. “And I’m here to stay. Anyway, I’m really excited about this act, and I just know you’ll love them. Thank you. And now, I present to you, Fading Fast.” Chase, Jeremy, P.I., no one was going to take any more than she’d lost, and she stepped off the stage to more cheers and merged with the crowd.
Her pulse pressed faster when an electronica mix suddenly rammed out of the speakers, and Casi drew her bow across the strings of her violin. Erica hoped everyone would think it was as cool as she did, but a realization struck her as she snaked through the crowd: she was happy. This was really where she belonged; this was her path, and she was lucky to have a second chance at it. She stopped when she hit the middle of the club and held her breath, waiting for that magical moment when the en masse writhing of the crowd would start. She only released her exhale when she was suddenly one of the only ones in her section standing still. Some people were engaged in conversation, but clusters of dancers were forming around her.
“What are you so relieved about?” Matt’s voice was right at her ear and one of his hands had fallen on her hip.
She spun to him. “Okay, so I have a confession. Bryson’s supposed to be here, and I thought it would be weird if I invited you and then you thought…”
“…You’d invited me because you’d changed your mind? Nice thought, but I’m not insane. If I’m hoping for anything tonight, it’s simply that you’ll say yes to a dance.” And with an agreeable smile, Erica took his hand, and he placed both of hers on the back of his neck before pulling her closer. They weren’t really moving in tempo to the music but she wanted to talk, anyway…and be vigilant. Abel was preoccupied with the brunette, and as long as she kept an eye on him she’d be able to warn Matt of any risk of sustaining a head injury before their dance was over.
