Page 78 of Reckless
If I was drawn into his life, his fame would affect me too. Not to the same scale, at least when the initial interest subsided, but my life wouldn’t quite be my own. Would I be willing to give up my privacy? Use an app to get groceries so I wouldn’t be photographed picking up a box of tampons? Gage had to have everything brought to him, so he wasn’t bombarded. Couldn’t even enjoy the freedom of walking down to the corner for a soda without the possibility of being mobbed. To me, that didn’t seem like much of a life. Then again, the only crowd that ever mobbed me was the gaggle of rabbits out in the pen, who would be shimmying up to my mom for dinner about now.
Maybe neither of us had it quite right.
I gathered the outfit I planned to wear to the concert and the toiletries I would need and Gage’s driver swept us away, delivering us to the back of the iconic Radio City Music Hall. It was the largest indoor theatre in the world, and I wandered while Gage worked, stopping in the auditorium, gaping at the historic art deco.
“Who are you?” I jumped and turned to a frowning man with dark gray hair that looked like he’d been dragging his hands through it. “Damn, you’re that woman.” He took a deep breath and yelled, “Gage?!”
“I—”
There was a curse behind me, and something hit the floor of the stage.
“Care to explain?” The man planted his fists on his hips, his stance wide, as if he was braced for a fight with a strong wind.
“What do you need me to explain, Ron?” Came from behind me. “I’ve brought Kelly with me.”
“For what reason?” His hands flung up into the air. “Didn’t I tell you no girlfriends? Didn’t I also explain why?”
My stomach twisted in knots. I got so caught up in my own emotions sometimes, thinking about whatIwanted, I didn’t consider the other people involved. Maybe my being here really would be bad for Gage’s career.
“Yeah,” Gage shot back, “you told me we can’t have partners because you want fans to think they stand a chance with us. But it makes fans wild. I had a woman in San Francisco promise to follow me to New York.”
He did?That had to have been the kisser. Did fans usually follow through on that kind of promise? An angry head of jealousy gnawed at the knot in my abdomen.
“That’s wonderful! We want all the groupies Gaged can get.”
“It’s dangerous, Ron,” Gage snapped. “If fans stop liking us because they think I’m dating someone then we don’t need them anyway. We can’t let other people dictate our lives.”
Ron looked pointedly at me. “We will talk about this another time, Gage.”
“We can talk about it all you want, the outcome won’t change.”
“It’s okay,” I interrupted. “I’ll stay out of the way. I don’t want to cause any trouble.” I showed I was as good as my word by heading to the backstage area.
“Oh, look who it is!” Andy greeted me as he came in the back door. At least he was happy to see me. “Kelly, how’s it going?”
“Good. This place is phenomenal.” I plastered a smile on my face, pushing Ron’s questioning my presence to the back of my mind. “I’ve explored and want to see what goes on backstage.”
“Oh, well you could give us a hand.”
That idea filled me with relief, at least I’d have something to do and not be in the way. Plus, I was thrilled to even be standing in the preparation area that had been used for productions for nearly a hundred years. “What do you need me to do?”
“You can help me move this monstrosity,” he said, gesturing toward a black box that was nearly as big as a Volkswagen. “Don’t worry, it isn’t as heavy as it looks.”
“What’s in it?” It was on wheels, so as we pushed it slowly it glided along the marred hardwood floor easily.
“Ben’s drum kit.”
“You aren’t moving my drums, are you?” Ben’s head popped out of a room to the side, his face panicked. “Last time you broke a cymbal…and I can’t have that happening tonight. I don’t have any more replacements.”
“Oh right, because there isn’t a single music shop in the whole of New York City.”
They were bickering so much like brothers, I couldn’t help laughing. The petty argument escalated until Ben was red in the face, facing off with Andy, looking like he might punch him out.
I finally interjected, “I’ll make sure nothing gets broken. Everything will be fine.”
“You think you can handle us lot?” Gage came up behind me and rubbed my shoulders.
“Good luck with that,” Ben spat and went to yell at a roadie.
