See You at the Show

by Michelle Betham

  He smiled back, kissing her gently. “I won’t be long. I just need the fresh air.”

  “Ok darling. I’ll get us a glass of that chardonnay George is recommending and I’ll see you inside.”

  He watched her move indoors with the grace and poise of a royal princess, waiting until she was out of sight before moving down from the relative safety of the terrace to the area closer to the stage. He needed to know, and he didn’t know why, he just needed to know if she was still here.

  Suddenly the crowd of mostly teenage girls erupted into a cacophony of boos and catcalls as somebody ran out onto the stage, and Daniel looked up to see who it was that was getting the full brunt of their teenage angst - and there she was. It was her. The woman from this afternoon. It was her. Now dressed in combat pants, the same heavy black boots and a black vest with ‘CREW’ written across the back of it, her short hair still covered by a black scarf, she seemed unphased by the negative attention she was getting.

  “That’s Stevie,” a voice beside Daniel said, and he looked to see who was there.

  A man dressed in jeans and the same ‘CREW’ t-shirt stood beside him, looking up at the stage.

  “Stevie?”

  Colin, Stevie’s closest friend in the road-crew fraternity, looked at Daniel, his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his torn and oil stained jeans. “Stevie Stone. I noticed you staring at her. She’s a bit of a legend in the world of rock roadie-ing is Stevie.”

  “She’s a roadie?” Daniel couldn’t hide the surprise in his voice.

  “She’s quite something, isn’t she? Been working with her for years I have. She’s an amazing girl.”

  Daniel looked back at the stage as she ran off to the side, out of sight. “Why was she getting that reaction?”

  Colin looked at Daniel through narrowed eyes, an expression that said he should really know the answer to that question. “Because of her relationship with Mark Cassidy.”

  “Mark Cassidy?”

  “Jesus, mate, you really have no idea about any of this, do you? Mark Cassidy’s the front man of Black Rock Diamond, the band. Him and Stevie have been in some kind of relationship for years now.”

  “Some kind of relationship? What does that mean?”

  “You ask a lot of questions, don’t you? It means that they sleep together. That’s why the girls don’t take to her much. They all want to sleep with Mark Cassidy, and Stevie does it on a regular basis.”

  Daniel felt a strange feeling in the pit of his stomach as he watched the stage, hoping she’d reappear. “What’s he like, this Mark Cassidy?”

  He found himself asking questions he’d never have dreamed of asking before, but he suddenly wanted to find out as much as he could about Stevie Stone.

  “A bit of a bastard if you ask me,” Colin replied. “Typical rock star in a lot of ways but one hell of a talented bastard all the same.”

  “They’re a couple?” Daniel asked, looking at Colin again.

  “It’s hard to say mate,” Colin shrugged. “Personally, I don’t think it’s anything serious but you never can tell with those two. Anyway, I’d better get backstage. This lot are getting a bit impatient so I reckon it’s time we got this show on the road.”

  Daniel stood there for a few seconds, letting this new information sink in. She was called Stevie. A strange name for a woman, but probably only so in the circles he moved in. She lived in a completely different world to his, and one he couldn’t even imagine if he was honest. And she was involved, in some way he couldn’t quite understand, with the front man of this band. The same front man Samantha had mentioned before? It must be.

  He knew he should be making his way back inside to see Samantha, but he couldn’t help ignoring what he should be doing and go with this uncharacteristic instinct he had to see what was going on backstage. He wanted to see this Mark Cassidy for himself. He wanted to see her.

  Winding his way through the mass of people as they tried to get as close to the stage as possible, he finally found a cordon of barriers lined up, fencing off an area he imagined was backstage. A few rather large men in dark jackets and sunglasses were hanging around, obviously there to keep out any unwanted teenage attention, but he had a feeling he’d have no problem getting access. He was a famous face himself, in certain circles. He just hoped they didn’t ask him why he wanted to see behind the scenes of a private rock gig because he had no explanation to hand, other than he just needed to see someone again. And he couldn’t tell anyone why.

  One of the black-clad men looked in his direction, peering over the top of his dark glasses, obviously taking a second look at a face he was certain he’d seen before but couldn’t quite place. But then, a prominent politician at an event like this probably wasn’t something they saw every day.

  Daniel smiled as the man came over.

  “I know you, don’t I?” he said, his brow furrowing as he tried harder to place Daniel’s face. And then, sudden recognition hit him. “You’re that MP, aren’t you? You’re running for Leader of the Opposition…hang on...I’ll get it in a minute...”

  “Daniel Madison.”

  “That’s it! I knew I’d seen you somewhere before. You were on Breakfast telly the other morning, weren’t you?”

  Daniel nodded, just wanting to get past the cordon. He wasn’t really in the mood for small talk.

  “Oh, sorry, do you want to come through? Take a bit of a look around? What are you doing somewhere like this anyway?” The security man asked, pulling a section of the barrier aside to let Daniel in.

  “It’s my Goddaughter’s party.”

  “Ah. I see. Ok then, Mr. Madison. Have a nice evening.”

  “Thank you,” Daniel smiled at the guard, grateful he hadn’t wanted a longer conversation.

  Sticking his hands in his pockets he started walking around an area full of people, most of them running backwards and forwards, shouting things at each other as he looked around, trying to see if he could find her amongst the throng of bodies. And then he caught a glimpse of her. You couldn’t really miss her. She stood out from a crowd like nobody he’d ever seen before, but she wasn’t alone.

  She was standing with her back against a wall, a tall and extremely handsome man standing in front of her, and she was smiling up at him as he slipped his hands up underneath her t-shirt, leaning in to give her a long, slow kiss. Daniel watched, knowing he should look away but he couldn’t. It wasn’t like it was something they were trying to keep private anyway, there were masses of people around. But it still felt as though he was intruding on something and he looked away for a brief second. But only for a second, and when he turned back she was wrapped in the arms of the man in front of her, both of them indulging in a kiss so deep it really did feel as though they should be somewhere more private. The man was quite obviously Mark Cassidy, and it certainly looked as though they were well and truly together from what Daniel was witnessing. So why did that make him feel so strange? Why was his head suddenly all fuzzy and clouded with thoughts he couldn’t process when he hadn’t even had a drink yet? For the first time in his life he felt a little out of control. And he had absolutely no idea why.

  ***

  “What’s up with you? You’re gonna break that fucking guitar if you’re not careful,” Jack said, watching Johnny as he absent-mindedly plucked hard at the strings of his acoustic guitar, his eyes very much on Stevie and Mark.

  “Nothing’s up with me.”

  “Bollocks...Jesus, is she here again?”

  Johnny looked around to see Billy and Ava sitting in the marquee behind them, Billy gently stroking his pregnant wife’s now huge baby bump.

  “Quit bitching, Jack, will you? She’s gonna have the baby soon then I’m sure she’ll want to stay home playing earth mother and we’ll all be back to normal.”

  “When you say normal, does that include your mood going back to the way it used to be?”

  Johnny looked at his band mate, who was lounging back in his chair, legs stretched ou
t in front of him, a cigarette in his mouth and a can of lager in his hand. Jack Warner played the rock star to the stereotypical letter sometimes, and if Johnny wasn’t so agitated he’d find it as funny as he usually did. Today he just found it irritating.

  “Fuck off, Jack.” He started strumming the guitar again, staring out around him.

  “See what I mean? What is wrong with you? Ever since Ibiza you’ve had a face on you.”

  “That’s what Stevie said.”

  “And she should know.”

  Johnny looked at him again. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  Jack shrugged. “You tell me, mate. You’re the one that goes off in a sulk every time her and Cassidy are off doing the deed. Jesus, can you hear that lot out there? I bet every one of them would drop their knickers for our front man, given half a chance. Hey, do you reckon he’s gonna see if he can pull something posh tonight?”

  Johnny stood up. He’d had enough of Jack for one night. He just wanted this gig over with so’s he could get back to the hotel and drink himself into oblivion. He knew Jack was right; he just didn’t want to admit it. There was something up with him, but he wasn’t going to tell him that.

  He put his guitar down by the opening to the marquee and went inside, looking for a drink of something, anything, just to take the edge off what he was feeling.

  “Are you ok?”

  He turned to see Billy standing beside him. Their mild mannered drummer always seemed to have a calming effect and sometimes Johnny wondered how he’d stuck it out in this crazy band for so long.

  “No. I’m fucking sick of him,” Johnny said, indicating towards Jack, who was now having a shouted conversation with Stevie as she continued to hang onto Mark. Johnny wasn’t quite sure what was irritating him more. “He’s really starting to piss me off, Billy.”

  Billy handed him a bottle of lager and leaned back against the table, folding his arms and looking outside, following Johnny’s gaze.

  “Why don’t you just tell her, Johnny?”

  Johnny looked at him. “What are you talking about?”

  “You’re in love with her, aren’t you? Stevie. You’re in love with her.”

  Johnny turned away, looking back outside where Stevie and Mark were still kissing as though the whole world around them didn’t exist. And it hurt. And that was a feeling he wasn’t used to.

  “Don’t talk crap, Billy.”

  “You might be able to kid Jack, and you certainly seem to be fooling yourself, but don’t lie to me, Johnny. I’ve been there; I know what it looks like.”

  “Know what what looks like?”

  “Love. The way you look at her’s changed, Johnny. The way you act around her...are you still sleeping with her?”

  “When she wants me, yes. I can’t say no to her, Billy...just like she can’t say no to Mark.”

  “So, you gonna carry on letting that happen? I mean, given the way you feel…”

  “You know nothing about how I feel, ok?”

  Billy shoved his hands deep into his pockets and looked at the ground for a second before looking back up at Johnny. “If you want to talk...”

  “I don’t need a fucking counsellor, Billy, so back off!”

  Billy held his hands up in surrender. “Whatever. I’m just saying.”

  “Yeah, well, don’t.”

  Billy started to walk away, but stopped and turned around, looking straight at Johnny. “Look, just be honest with yourself, Johnny, ok? Then you’ll know what you need to do.”

  ***

  Stevie grabbed Mark’s t-shirt, pulling him closer to her, standing up on tip-toe to receive another of his long, deep kisses. She couldn’t get enough of them today. They’d spent a good couple of hours just having sex once she’d got back to the hotel but she still wanted him badly. She still wanted to feel him next to her, his naked skin touching hers. Mark Cassidy had reeled her in big time today and she was reluctant to let him go.

  “Baby, baby, you are killing me tonight,” he groaned, his hands creeping up underneath her t-shirt, the touch of his fingers making her shiver as his mouth lowered down onto hers. His lips were so soft as they moved roughly against hers, that familiar taste of cigarette smoke heavy on his breath but she didn’t care, she just wanted him to kiss her. “We are so gonna fuck like there’s no tomorrow when this is all over.”

  She smiled, running her fingers through his dark hair, pushing it away from his face. “You’re gonna behave yourself tonight then?”

  He smiled too. The Cassidy special. “Hey, no-one’s too sure of the ages of this lot here tonight, babe. Too risky.”

  “I suppose I should think myself lucky then.”

  His hand moved lower, sliding down the back of her combat pants as his mouth hovered over hers. “You’re gonna be very lucky, Ms. Stone. Very, very lucky.”

  “Promises, promises,” she whispered, closing her eyes as he kissed her again, sliding her hands up and down his strong, toned arms, his muscles hard beneath her fingers.

  “I’d better go,” he said, stroking her waist, pulling her against him for one last kiss. “Gotta job to do here, even if I can’t be bothered.”

  “Give them your best, Mark. You always give your best; don’t let this be an exception. In fact, give them the full Mark Cassidy treatment tonight and I might just do that thing you’ve always wanted me to do but, so far, I’ve refused point blank to even think about.”

  His face broke into that famous smile again. “No kidding?”

  She laughed, running her fingers over his tattooed arms again. “No kidding. Now go on, get out there and entertain those kids.”

  She watched him run off, folding her arms against her, her stomach doing little somersaults she’d tried to discourage but couldn’t stop. Where Mark Cassidy was concerned she should be forgetting all that kind of crap.

  “That was quite a show you put on there,” Johnny said, leaning back against the wall beside her.

  She looked at him. “Nothing different from usual. And shouldn’t you be getting ready with the rest of them?”

  “In a minute. So, you going back to the hotel with him tonight?”

  Stevie started fiddling with the cuff watch on her left wrist, looking down at it as she did so. “If by ‘him’ you mean Mark then, yeah. That’s the plan.”

  “Unless he gets sidetracked.”

  She looked up at him again. “He won’t. Not tonight.”

  “Why? What you promised him?”

  She smiled. “Something you’ll never get the benefit of.”

  Johnny knew she hadn’t meant that to be a cutting remark, but it had been. “If he lets you down...”

  She looked at him with the eyes of a believing child and it scared him a little bit. Stevie never let her vulnerable side show, especially when it came to Mark Cassidy. So why was she letting her guard down now?

  “He won’t let me down.”

  Johnny took her hand and squeezed it tight. “If he does, you know where I am.”

  She slowly let go of his hand as he walked away without looking back. She was starting to think they were putting something in the water around here because everyone seemed in a strange mood today.

  She leaned back against the wall and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.

  “Is everything ok?”

  A voice unlike any she’d heard around the back of this stage – or any stage, come to think of it - made her open her eyes and she turned to see who it belonged to. A face she recognised but couldn’t quite place where from looked at her. He had a lovely smile, and the most beautiful green eyes, but who the hell was he?

  “Everything’s fine. Thank you. And you are?”

  He continued to look at her, and she should have felt uncomfortable, but she didn’t.

  “Sorry. I should have introduced myself this afternoon.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “This afternoon?”

  “When we bumped into each other. You were busy setting up the stage for tonight and I
sent your cables flying.”

  “Oh...yeah. Ok.” She hadn’t really taken a great deal of notice this afternoon but looking at him now, she could swear she’d seen him somewhere before today.

  “I’m Daniel Madison.”

  She knew that name. It rang a very distant bell, anyway. But she was still looking at him with a slightly puzzled expression.

  “I’m an MP.”

  “Really?” She cocked her head to one side, as if studying him further. “Were you on TV the other day?”

  He nodded and she realised that’s where she’d seen him before. She hadn’t actually been watching it, the TV had just been on in the background when she’d been with Mark, but she knew she’d seen him somewhere before.

  “What you doing here then? This isn’t the kind of place I’d expect to see someone like you.”

  “Someone like me?”

  “You’re not exactly a biker type, are you?”

  He had to laugh. “No. Far from it. This party, it’s for my Goddaughter. That’s why I’m here.” But that wasn’t the only reason. Not now.

  “Right. Thought your type wouldn’t hang around these gigs if it wasn’t for some good reason or other.”

  “My type?”

  She looked at him with those incredible eyes and he felt that feeling in the pit of his stomach again. The one he couldn’t explain. The one that was confusing the hell out of him.

  “The posh type,” Stevie said, looking away and fiddling with her watch again. “What do you want, anyway?”

  Daniel didn’t know. He didn’t know what he wanted; all he knew was that he wanted to stay here, talking to her. And he had no idea why.

  “I want to see you again.”

  The words just fell out of his mouth, as if someone else was saying them. He’d had no control over them, he hadn’t even realised he was saying them until he’d started to hear them.

  Stevie looked at him as if he was mad. What the hell must she think of him? Why had he said that? He didn’t know. He didn’t really know what he was doing anymore. All he knew was that now the words had come out, he’d meant them.