Chapter Forty-Five

Staring at her reflection in the elevator doors as they made their way to the lobby, Stephanie smoothed down her sweater with one hand and nervously pushed at her glasses with the other.  I should have left my contacts in.  She shouldn’t be this nervous.  She had already met Jon and he was the one that gave everybody six fits when they were within breathing distance of the man.  And she was sleeping with Richie for fuck’s sake!  Meeting David and Tico and possibly Hugh should be a walk in the park.

But she’d been a fan too long to not be nervous.  She looked up when she felt Richie squeeze her hand.

“You look great.”  He fingered the curl that was lying over her shoulder.  “And don’t be nervous sweetheart.  It’s just the guys.”

She rolled her eyes and studied her reflection again.  “Uh, fan girl here, hello.  Did you miss that somewhere?  I’ve been a fan of you guys since the first of forever and now I’m gonna meet the balance of the band and share a meal with all of you.”  She cleared her throat before the fan girl squeal could rear its ugly head.  “Do you how many kinds of unreal this is?”

He chuckled and pulled her close.  This was the most worked up he had seen her about the Bon Jovi side of his life since he met her.   “Relax sweetheart, Dave and Tico are gonna love you. You already met and had a meal with Jon so what’s to worry about?”

She huffed out a breath.   He had a point, damn it.  “You’re right, you’re right.”  She took a deep breath and blew it out.  “Okay, I’m fine.  Just needed to get that out of my system.” She was still a bit of a wreck on the inside, but hopefully it didn’t show on the outside.

Richie dipped his head and pressed his lips to hers.  “Liar” he muttered against her mouth. He was still kissing her when the doors slid open in the lobby.

“Finally, man.  Can we go-” David turned and cut himself off.  “Who is that with him and Jesus, her tonsils must taste pretty damn good.”

Jon and Tico both turned toward the elevator to see what David was going on about.  Jon recognized the dark head and slim body that Richie lip-locked with.  “Uh, Rich?”

At the sound of the guys’ voices Richie pulled his mouth from Stephanie’s and turned to face his brothers in arms.  “Hey” he smiled.  “Look who I found upstairs.”

Stephanie turned and found three pairs of eyes trained on them.  She felt her face go through 27 shades of red.  “Um, hi Jon.  Nice to see you again.”

Pulling his ringing phone from his pocket, he smiled absently and nodded his head.  “Hey.”

Richie took her hand and led her from the elevator.  He stopped in front of David and Tico, turning toward his curly-headed friend first.  “Sweetheart, this is David Bryan.”

David held out his hand, “Can we call you ‘sweetheart’ too?”  He smiled and waited, wanting to see if she was going to be a good sport and play along or if she was going to be a wet blanket on the evening.  With Richie’s track record, he never knew what to expect from his choice of female companionship.

Reaching beyond her embarrassment and nerves she found her voice and a smile and even managed a small laugh.  Now she could see what her friend Wils saw in him.  He had pretty blue eyes and from the lines around his mouth and those eyes, he smiled, a lot.  “Not if you want me to answer you.”   She shook his hand.  “My name is Stephanie.  It’s nice to meet you.”

Richie turned her toward Tico, “and this is Tico Torres.”

Taking her hand, he leaned in and pressed a kiss to her cheek.  “Hi baby, nice to meet you.”

She smiled at him, his voice was wonderfully deep and slightly raspy.  She gave his hand a slight squeeze in return.  “It’s nice to meet you too.”

Tucking his phone back in his pocket, Jon waded into the middle of the introductions.  “If the formalities are out of the way, the car is waiting.  Let’s go.”

Sitting at their table at nota bene, Stephanie took a sip of the most expensive glass of wine she had ever had and just listened to the conversation as it flowed around her.  They spoke of family, friends, sport scores and anything and everything but the tour.

Grasping her hand under the table, Richie leaned in and whispered in her ear.  “You all right sweetheart?  You’re awful quiet.”

She squeezed his hand gently, “yeah, just listening to everyone and wondering when the questions are going to start.”

She didn’t have to wait long.

David set his glass on the table and turned his attention on the whispering couple.  “So, who are you, where are you from and just how did you two meet?”

Before Stephanie could open her mouth, Richie whispered in her ear again.  “Let’s have a little fun with him.” 

She nodded slightly before answering the first two of his three questions.  “I already told you my name, and I’m from New York.”   She let Richie answer the last of his questions.  

“I found her standing on the side of the road with a bunch of her friends.”

Stephanie stared at him for a moment and then started to laugh, remembering when she and her friends had come upon Richie at The Farm restaurant at The Grove and then again when they were waiting at the valet for her car.

David looked at her incredulously.  “You think being picked up by the side of the road like yesterday’s trash is funny?”

Struggling to bring her giggles under control she nodded her head and tried to explain.  “Yes, actually, I do.”  Another laugh escaped before she continued.   “Our first date, that was lunch after a car wash.”

Now it was Richie’s turn to start laughing as he remembered washing her car on a pretty Saturday afternoon and the sandwiches she had fixed.

David looked from Stephanie to Rich and then to Jon who was laughing too.  He had heard the story of how they met before.  David shook his head, “Rich man, you need to get out more.”

Richie reached around the back of Stephanie’s chair and gave David a playful punch in the shoulder.  “You want the real story now?”

They picked at their salads and their meals were served as they told David and Tico the unembellished story of how they met.  

David laughed.  “You really helped her wash her car?”

Richie wiped his mouth with his napkin and nodded.  “Yeah.  She’s got a hot car!”

Jon tuned back in to the conversation at that comment.  “What kind of car?”  He was sure Richie was exaggerating.  It couldn’t be anything all that amazing.

“A 1967 Camaro SS, convertible.”

Jon leered at Stephanie across the table, nearly drooling just picturing the car.  That was a totally sweet car and not at all what he expected his friend to say.  “How did you happen to come by such a machine?”

Her expression softened and a hint of sadness showed around her eyes at the memory the question invoked.  “It was a birthday gift, when I turned 40.”   

She went on to explain about the car and how she and Mark had restored it with the two upgrades and then had it painted the factory original Madeira Maroon.  “It’s loud and growly with a 350 V-8 and two-speed “Powerglide” automatic transmission.  We wanted the 396 V-8 but couldn’t find one anywhere that we could afford.  And it’s perfect for the weather in southern California.  I’ve had the top down more in the last few months than I did when I lived in New York.”

All the guys had gone quiet at her recitation of the details of the car that most girls wouldn’t have the foggiest idea about.  “You really know your car.”  Jon was more than a little surprised and a lot impressed that she knew so much.  They all were.  Except Richie.  She had explained about the car to him during one of their Saturday car washes.

She shrugged a shoulder at Jon’s statement.  “I wanted to help Mark and he was patient enough to answer my questions and teach me what I needed to know.”  She took her napkin off her lap and set it beside her plate.  “If you’ll excuse me for a minute.”  She looked at Richie, “I’ll be right back.”

He gave her hand a squeeze and watched her walk away from the table before turning his attention back to his bandmates. “She’s great, isn’t she?”

Chapter Forty-Four

With a frustrated sigh, Stephanie hitched her laptop bag and her purse higher on her shoulder and pulled her suitcase behind her down the hall.  Her flight had been uneventful, long, but uneventful. It was getting through customs that had been a real pain in the ass. She had forgotten just how insane it was getting into another country.  For some unknown reason the agents had decided it was her day to be singled out, have her bag rifled through and ask her umpteen million questions about why she was there, where she was going, who she was going with and how long her stay was going to be.  It would be worse going home, she was sure.  But she had answered their questions as simply and pleasantly as possible. I’m going to see a rock concert.  I’m leaving on Tuesday.  No, I’m not meeting anyone. Liar.  I’m going to get laid.  Okay, so she hadn’t said that last bit, but maybe she should have.

Who would have thought going to see her boyfriend’s band play would be such a big deal?

Fishing her key card out of her pocket she let herself into her room.  Closing the door behind her she leaned against it and let out a low whistle.  “So this is how the other half travels.”  She set her purse and laptop on the table and wandered through the suite.  The color scheme was quiet, comforting in its beige and gold tones with soft blue in the bedroom.  The king-sized bed took up much of the space and the view of the City from the window was spectacular.  The bathroom had her nearly drooling with marble everywhere and its separate walk-in shower.  Dragging herself from the decadence of the bathroom she wandered the rest of the suite, running her fingers lightly over the high-polished tables and antiques.  The wet bar looked inviting.  She’d have to break into the complimentary bottle of wine later.

She wandered back to the door where she had left her things and took her suitcase into the bedroom.  After unpacking her things, she took her laptop and purse to the living room.  While her computer was booting up, she gave in to temptation and took a glass from the wet bar, uncorked the chardonnay and stood in front of the wide window taking in the city below.  It was a hell of a view.  Twilight was settling over the cityscape, lights were winking on here and there while people bustled from store to bar, from cab to restaurant.

Reaching over the back of the sofa, she rummaged in her purse for her phone.  She had a sudden urge to talk to Richie.  They hadn’t really talked since the night she had made her arrangements to come to Toronto. And he still didn’t know she was here.  Unlocking her phone she found she had two text messages and a voice mail.  Scrolling through, the texts were from her friends wishing her a great trip.  The voice mail was from Richie.

Hey sweetheart, looks like I missed you again. We seem to be doing that a lot lately.

She smiled at the low chuckle and almost hung up at the long silence.  Before she clicked off she heard his voice once more.

I miss you.  I’ll try calling you again.  Hopefully next time I’ll get you and not your voice mail.  Bye for now.

Closing out of her voice mail, Stephanie set her wine down and sat on the couch.  He had sounded a little like she felt right now.  Alone and a little lonely.  Sure, she had traveled alone before, but she was always heading somewhere to meet up with her friends, sharing a hotel room with three or four girls.  She looked around the room once again.  A room like this she would have shared with Mark for a romantic getaway.  She smiled wistfully.  Maybe not exactly like this, but at least she wouldn’t be sitting here alone with her laptop ready to work.  

She finished her wine.  Enough wallowing.  Picking up her phone she unlocked it and scrolled through her contacts to Richie’s number.  Right now she had a strong need to hear his voice.  Hitting dial, she waited, hoping to get him and not his voice mail.

~

Picking up his jacket and reached for his phone to slip it into his pocket.  The guys were going to be heading to dinner soon and he didn’t need one of them calling him to hurry him along.  He ran his fingers through his hair.  The nap had done him some good.  He didn’t feel quite so tired now.  They had only been back on the road two weeks and already it was getting to him.  How was he going to get through the next five months?

His phone vibrated in his pocket as he was perusing the contents of the wet bar.  Plucking one of the small bottles from the shelf he stood and dug his phone out.  Finally he thought as he touched the screen with a smile.  He was going to get to hear her voice and not the damned voice mail.

“Hey Sweetheart,” he abandoned the bottle, the need for a drink dissipated and settled in the nearest chair.  “How are you?”

She smiled.  “Better now.  I was beginning to think we’d be playing phone tag forever.”

He chuckled quietly.  “It’s not my idea of fun, but it happens sometimes.”  He didn’t miss the catch in her voice.  The hint of sadness she couldn’t quite conceal.  “Is everything okay sweetheart?”

She got up and wandered back to the big window.  “I’m-” she paused and reconsidered.  No more pussy-footing around.  You wanted to see him that’s why you came here.  “Rich, I’m here.”

He sat up straighter in his chair, his heart beat a little faster.  Did that mean what he thought, hoped it meant.  “Here where, Sweetheart?”

She studied her reflection in the window.  “Here, Rich.  In Toronto.  At the Four Seasons.”

He was out of his chair like a shot and nearly to the door as he asked his next question.  “What room are you in?”

 “3517.”  Setting her phone down she hurried to her door and had it open before he could even knock and found herself wrapped in a strong embrace and lost in a welcoming hungry kiss.

“Sweetheart” he asked between kisses, “what are you doing here and why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

Cupping his face in her hands, she raised his head up so they were eye to eye.  “Surprise.”

Smiling, he kissed her again and kicked the door shut with his foot.  Without letting her go he crossed the room and sat down on the couch, settling her on his lap.  “You have no idea how happy I am to see you, sweetheart” he murmured as he nuzzled into her neck.

She shifted on his lap, rubbing her bottom against his rapidly rising erection. “I think I can guess.”

He laughed before capturing her lips once again.  “Naughty girl” he muttered and rearranged her so she was straddling his lap, cradling his harness in her softness.

She leaned in to his kisses, pressing against his chest and Muddy Waters’ Who Do You Trust started playing from somewhere.  She pulled her mouth from his, “I think your pocket is ringing.”

The only sound he could hear was the roar of his own pulse in his head.  He took a deep breath and fished in his pocket, his hand brushing against her breast had him nearly saying “fuck it” and letting the call go to voice mail. 

She rocked against him and her breath was warm at his ear, “answer it.”

With his free hand he held her hips down, “you need to stop.”  He held her there as he answered the phone.  “What do you want?”  It was Jon, he didn’t need the formality of ‘hello’.

“Hey, you coming to dinner?   We’re waiting on you.”

Fuck.  He had forgotten about dinner.  “Yeah, I’ll be-” he paused and looked at Steph.  “Is there room for one more?”

Jon roamed to look out the door at the car.  “Sure why not?  Who are you bringing?”  They had only been at the hotel for a day.  Who the hell could have found in such a short time?  He shook his head at the absurdness of the question.  It was Richie, he could find anyone at any given time.

“We’ll be down in a minute.”  He shut the phone and looked at Stephanie once more.  “Did you eat yet?  Want to come to dinner with us?”

She swallowed back her nerves.  “Us?”  She had a feeling she knew who ‘us’ was, but she wasn’t going to assume.

“Yeah, us.  The guys.”

She climbed off his lap, grabbed her purse and headed toward the bathroom.  No way was she going to see Jon again and meet the others looking like she’d traveled half the day and been ravaged by her man.  “Just give me a minute.”

Chapter Forty-Three

Author's note:  I fudged the dates for the concert.  I know the dates were the 14th and 15th, but it worked better for the story if I did it this way.   Thanks and enjoy!


 

“Okay, thank you so much.  I’ll call again next week for the location and time.” 

Stephanie hung up the phone and smiled.  She had finally made the call to the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity and there was a new project starting up and they were grateful for her offer to help.  She actually felt excited about the prospect of getting involved again.  She smirked.  Dr. Grace would be so proud. 

Pushing back from her desk she stood and stretched.  She was slowly finding the new rhythm her life had taken on.  The steps were different, new and while she was struggling right now, she’d get them eventually.  She rolled her shoulders.  Hopefully her new partner wouldn’t get tired of waiting for her to master them. 

She sat back down and started to gather her things and shut down her computer.  Thinking about her partner, she wondered what Richie was doing.  He had been gone for a week now and, while they had talked nearly every day, it wasn’t the same as him just showing up at her house or enjoying a meal together.  She picked up her purse and slung it over her shoulder.  She supposed she would have to get used to this, all the traveling he did.  Picking up her attaché she headed toward the door.  She’d just have to find things to keep herself busy.

Or, maybe, she thought as she slipped out the door and over to her car, maybe she could go see him.  He might like that.  Wouldn’t he?  She tossed her purse and bag onto the passenger seat and started the car.  She’d check the schedule and see where they were going to be for more than one night.

When her car was safely parked in the garage and she had changed into her most comfortable I-feel-like-a-slob-and-I-don’t-care clothes and had a glass of wine poured, she booted up her laptop and headed right over to the BJCT website the girls had started to see where the band was playing that week.

She took a sip from her glass and scanned the page.  She couldn’t help the smile.  They were headed to Toronto later in the week.  Two shows were scheduled over Valentines.  Setting her glass down, she opened a new tab and brought up the ticket-bastard website.  Sending up a silent prayer she searched for a ticket for the first night.  They came back with one crappy-up-in-the-rafters seat.  She sighed and changed her search parameters, hoping for something slightly closer.

She frowned when the next best seat came back behind the stage.  I suppose looking at his ass is better than not seeing him at all she thought as she clicked the “purchase” button.  She completed her transaction and then started the process all over again for the show on Valentine’s Day.  Considering the ticket she got for the first show, she didn’t get her hopes up for one much better for this show. 

She had to rub her eyes and make sure she was seeing things right when the screen popped up.  She had to be seeing things.  That couldn’t be a pit ticket she was looking at.  Could it?  Tugging her glasses off she leaned in, making sure her eyes weren’t playing tricks on her.   She grinned and clicked “purchase” before her time ran out.  How the hell had she gotten that lucky?

She spun giddily around in her chair as the purchase went through.  Damn.  She had never been that close at a show since 1989.  Stopping the chair she turned back to the computer.  She needed to make airline reservations and she needed to see if there was a room left somewhere in Toronto for that weekend.  First, though, she needed to send off an email to her girls and see if she could find out what hotel might be the best one to try.

To:     The Girls

From: Q

Re:     Back in the Swing of Things

Hey girls, guess what?!  I’m going to Toronto for the two shows over Valentines.  I got a craptastic behind the stage ticket for the first show, but on Valentines, holy hell.  I scored a first row pit ticket!  I have no idea how there was even one left, but it’s mine.  I can’t even tell you how excited I am. 

Richie doesn’t know I’m coming yet.  I haven’t decided if I should tell him or surprise him.  I’m leaning more toward the surprising.  What do you all think?

Oh, do you guys know a good hotel?  I need a room.  :P

Thanks. 

Love to you all…

Q

Dropping her email down to the bottom so she could keep working, she closed the ticket-bastard tabs and started hunting down airfare.  She only winced a little at the over-inflated charge she had to pay, but it would be worth it in the end.  Besides, she had enough money to last three lifetimes.  Why not spend a little on something utterly frivolous and totally indulgent?

Glancing down she noticed she had an email.  Pulling it up she smiled, her girls had gotten back to her already.

To:     Q

From:  Willow

Re:     Back in the Swing of Things

First, you go girl!  It’s about time you got back on the horse.  Can I just say I’m jealous?!

You might want to get in touch with NorwichLiz about the hotel, but I’m guessing the Four Seasons is a good place to start.

I say go for the surprise.  I’m sure he’ll love it.

Have a blast and send pictures!

Love you lots-

Wils

Stephanie smiled widely. She had the best friends.  She opened a new tab and searched out the Four Seasons in Toronto.  Crossing her fingers, she typed in her dates and hit “enter.”  Before she could even take a sip of her wine, the hotel came back.  They had one room left for that weekend.  Scrolling down through, she saw it was a suite.  The price per night scared her more than a little.  Holy crap.  That was a lot of money to pay for a place to sleep.  Her fingers hovered over the mouse. 

Taking a deep swallow of wine she glanced back at the screen.  Fuck it she thought and clicked “reserve.”  

Taking her e-tickets from the printer she slipped them into her decorative manila folder for safekeeping.  She’d talk to her boss on Monday about taking a couple of days off.  Hell, she could take her computer and work from the hotel if she had to.  She would be flying in on Saturday and would have the better part of the day to work if that’s what her boss wanted.   

Closing down her computer, she drained her glass of wine and set it by the sink.  Grabbing her phone she headed up the stairs and filled her tub with steamy water and frothy bubbles.

It was almost time for her nightly call from Richie.  She just had to hope she could keep the excitement out of her voice and not spill the surprise.