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“They’ll wait all night for another glimpse of the band when you leave.”
“And if we head up the street to the Rainbow for a late dinner,” Tommy added, “They’ll follow us there too.”
The Rainbow Bar & Grill was one of the most well-known rock and roll clubs in the country, founded in 1972 and a known hangout for all kinds of celebrities. It was rumored that John Belushi ate his last meal there and bands like Led Zeppelin, the Who and even Elvis Presley had been known to spend time there.
“Guys, you have a lot of people clamoring to come backstage,” Sasha said as she breezed in.
She was petite, with long curly hair, big brown eyes, and a gorgeous smile, but she was imposing as hell in tight black jeans, a red silk blouse, and a sequined black blazer, with four-inch stilettos. If I didn’t know her, I would’ve been intimidated. Of course, the fact that she traveled with a big, muscular bodyguard didn’t hurt either.
“I know you don’t normally like a crowd backstage before a show,” Sasha continued, looking at Kingston. “But tonight is different. This is the first show without Carter, and we need to give everyone a feeling of community, to show them the band is as strong as ever.”
Kingston made a face. “We can do that tonight, but make sure everyone knows that won’t fly on tour.”
She held up her hands in mock surrender. “Absolutely. This is the only ‘first show since Carter.’ After this, we go back to business as usual.” She turned to me. “Do you get stage fright? Do you need time to prepare mentally? I need to know your routine so I can run interference tonight.”
“I’m fine,” I lied without hesitation. “Normally, I prefer a few minutes of quiet before I get on stage, but I can go with the flow tonight.”
“Great.” Sasha turned away, typing something on her phone.
As soon as she was out of earshot, Kingston leaned over to whisper in my ear.
“Just FYI. I can tell when you’re lying.”
15
Kingston
I didn’t have time to hear her response because the door opened a flood of people came in. Luckily, there were mostly people we knew, like the members of Nobody’s Fool and Kirsten Aiken. I headed in her direction with a smile. We kept in touch, and she updated me on her vocal training, school, and the songs she was writing. Not only could she sing, but she was writing music that was advanced for her age, so I did my best to be a mentor of sorts.
“Hey, kiddo. I didn’t know you were coming!” I reached out to hug her.
“Hi.” Her eyes sparkled with excitement as she smiled up at me. “I wanted to be here for the first gig with the new bassist. And Ford wanted to come too, so we drove down for the night.” They lived in Las Vegas.
“I’m glad you’re here. We need to talk about the European tour.”
Her face fell a little. “It’s my senior year. Syd doesn’t think I should miss that many days of school.” Sydney was her older sister, who was her legal guardian.
“Well, maybe I can talk her into it,” I whispered in a conspiratorial tone.
“I don’t know.” She made a face. “She’s pretty strict sometimes.”
“Don’t stress until it’s a final no, okay? Now, come meet Devyn.” I led her over to where Devyn was now chatting with Ford, the rhythm guitarist, and Lexi, the lead singer, of Nobody’s Fool. “Dev, I want you to meet Kirsten. Kirsten, this is Devyn Cates.”
“It’s so cool to meet you!” Kirsten gushed. “There aren’t enough women in rock, so this is really exciting.”
“For me, too!” Devyn said, shaking her hand.
“I have a million questions for you, but I should probably wait until after the show, huh?”
“I would appreciate that,” Devyn said. “But feel free to come find me after.”
“Thank you.” Kirsten danced off in the opposite direction, and I smiled after her.
“So much energy,” I murmured.
“She’s excited tonight,” Ford said in his faint Texas drawl. “At home she’s pretty chill.”
“It’s good to be able to turn it on and off,” Devyn said. “You don’t want to be turned up to eleven twenty-four-seven, you know? There’s a time and a place for everything, and if she’s already figured that out, she’s ahead of the game.”
