Page 33 of Rush
‘Come in, guys.’ He held the door for them and welcomed them into the dressing room, where Savi was met with the intense scent of his aftershave. They were underground and there were no windows, but still, how did he not feel the need to sneeze non-stop? ‘How was your flight? My crew took good care of you, I hope.’
‘The drinks and salted peanuts were my favourite part,’ Marco said. ‘The Revolution jet is alcohol free for the most part, because of Brett’s past issues, and it sucks.’
‘But we do usually only use it to get to and from work events,’ Savi pointed out.
‘Yeah, there is that,’ he agreed. ‘So, is this all yours, Jesse? Or do you share with your band?’ Marco wasted no time in wandering around the room, taking it all in.
The dressing table was lined with basic makeup and hair products and sat underneath huge light-up mirrors, Jesse’s collection of one-of-a-kind guitars had a home next to the leather sofas, and the dressing table held a selection of whiskey, bourbon and the same champers the limo had been stocked with. His cowboy boots were all lined up in arow of red, black, dark brown and beige and the closet was stocked with an array of plaid and denim shirts, suede jackets and plain V-neck t-shirts. The whole room screamed Jesse, right down to the bags of Swedish Fish jelly sweets on the coffee table. He never went anywhere without them.
It was strange seeing his home away from home, but she concluded it wasn’t much different to her own lifestyle. Her hotel rooms were all personalised by her boots and hats and race suits wherever she went, and both of them moved those things from place to place, city to city. But as for personal belongings? Photos and keepsakes, memories. Those things all stayed in their childhood bedrooms in Wyoming. They were valuable, too valuable to take on the road.
‘The band has their own dressing room down the corridor. It’s a hell of a lot louder in there than it is in here, I need my own space. I can’t deal with their bickering or constant strumming, not in the lead-up to a show. Once we make it to sound check, different story. That’s when we morph into one.’
‘Knock knock!’ a female voice called out and Savi immediately felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. It was the one thing that made her nervous with Jesse’s job: the female attention that typically came along with the fame. She wanted to trust that Jesse wouldn’t stray, but could you everfullytrust anyone? But then Jesse’s manager appeared and her worries washed away.
‘Sapphire!’ She rushed towards her and wrapped her up in a warm hug.
‘Hi, Sav.’ The petite brunette returned the embrace, rubbing Savi’s back like no time had passed. They’d mostlyinteracted via video calls over the last four years, when Jesse had been beckoned into work meetings while they were hiding out in the cabin, but they’d managed to hang out at Jesse’s place in Wyoming a few times, too. ‘It’s so good to see you again.’
‘Congratulations on the baby.’ Savi stepped back and smiled affectionately at the tiny bump she had. Well, it wasn’t that tiny really, not compared to Sapphire’s dinky little frame.
‘Congratulations on the fake boyfriend,’ she replied, then lowering her voice to a whisper, she glanced at Marco who was checking out Jesse’s vintage Fender without daring to touch it. ‘He’s quite the catch.’
Jesse cleared his throat from his position next to the sofa. ‘I’m right here.’
‘You should’ve picked someone ugly for her if you didn’t want us to gossip.’
‘It’s alright, Jesse.’ Marco dragged his attention away from the guitar. ‘We both have women falling at our feet, but your cowgirl has only got eyes for you.’
‘He’s a possessive guy. Comes with the whole brooding cowboy thing he’s got going on,’ Sapphire teased, earning a deadly look from her client.
‘I get it, Savannah is a great girl. But anyway, Sapphire, you looking for a stepdad for that little one?’ He pointed at her bump, laughing wickedly when Savi smacked him on the arm. Sapphire’s jaw dropped before she broke out into a fit of the giggles, and Jesse’s jaw got tighter and tighter. If he wasn’t careful, he’d break his molars.
So, Marco was breaking out his flirtatious side, was he? As long as he didn’t use it on Savi in front of Jesse, theyshould all be safe. Although it seemed even flirting with a member of his staff was a step too far, judging by the way he turned his back on them all and poured himself a whiskey. Neat. All Marco could offer Savi was an apologetic shrug which was followed by a smirk. He wasn’t sorry at all; he was having a field day with this.
‘Hello?’ another voice called out, joining the chaos. Blake stepped into the room, dressed in a full suit. The same uniform he had worn when he’d cornered them at the track to kick this whole fake relationship scenario off. Slight overkill considering the star of the show was currently wearing jeans and a vintage Dallas Cowboys sweatshirt, but Blake was ever the professional.
‘Blake.’ Marco shook his hand, and Blake was much less intense than Jesse had been.
‘How are things going with you two?’ he asked, looking pleased to see them both there together. ‘I’ve seen a large number of headlines, and photos and videos. You guys are naturals.’
‘Ahem.’ Jesse cleared his throat, shifting uncomfortably.
‘I don’t mean it like that, Jess,’ Blake tutted. ‘Jealousy doesn’t suit you.’
The tension in the room shifted even further into uncomfortable territory, and Savi was about ready to leave and abandon the whole idea. She should have introduced them at dinner or something, not hours before Jesse performed. He was stressed and this was only adding to it. Marco, meanwhile, was still peering around and clearly being nosy, which seemed to be irritating Jesse even more. Savi couldn’t blame her teammate, not many people hadthe opportunity to be in the dressing room of one of the world’s biggest country music stars.
‘So, Sapphire, when’s your last day with Jess?’ Savi asked the one thing she’d been dying to know. How long did she have before Jesse’s work life imploded, and he started claiming he didn’t want to be a musician anymore? As if there was nobody else capable of doing Sapphire’s job in the entire music industry.
‘I’ve got three more months,’ she smiled nervously. ‘The label has got a replacement lined up. She’s great, he’s in good hands.’
‘She’s an intern,’ Jesse scoffed and took a swig of his whiskey.
‘An intern who I have personally been training, Jess. You need to chill.’
‘You’ll be fine, you knew Sapph wasn’t gonna stay with you forever.’
‘I wanted to believe she would,’ he shrugged. ‘Anyway, we’re ignoring Marco. Sorry, man.’ Jesse clapped him on the shoulder, his large frame overpowering Marco’s slimmer, athletic build. They couldn’t be more different.
