Blessed Tragedy(29)

By the end of our second week on the road, word was getting out about the changes we'd made over the break. Tanya quickly got over her initial irritation that I'd given myself a makeover. She might be good at parts of her job, but the woman really could be a miserable bitch when she wasn't allowed to micromanage. And we were all seeing that side of her more and more as Jon and Colton worked to pull us in the direction they wanted to see the band going. When she told Jon it'd never work to add a fifth member to the group when we were as solid as we were, I thought she'd quickly become a non-issue but he calmed down and didn't send her packing right then and there.

“Colt, sweetie...” I felt my blood pressure rising with her syrupy sweet greeting and accompanying embrace. “We need to talk.”

Seeing her link her arm in his to turn him away from the bus filled me with the sudden urge to throat punch her. I still wasn't used to the jealousy I felt when I saw Colt with other women, and seeing her latch onto him was worse than a groupie trying to get in his pants. For years, I'd been telling him that she had a thing for him and he told me I was insane. Seeing the glare she shot over her shoulder as they walked away brought that assumption back to the surface.

The mature thing to do would have been to continue on to the picnic area where all of the bands were hanging out. I've never been one to do the mature thing. Instead, I headed back to the bus. Once I carefully opened the bedroom window, I could faintly hear their conversation.

“...it's not smart, sweetie.” I cracked my knuckles, really pissed to hear her repeatedly calling him sweetie. Even I didn't call him that and we were involved. “I'm saying you really need to think about what you're doing. It doesn't look good.”

“I'm well aware of what I'm doing, Tanya.” Colt sounded irritated. I wished I could see his expressive eyes to get a better read on his emotions. “And I think you're wrong.”

“Sweetheart, this is what I'm paid to do. I'm only looking out for your best interests here.” I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Why was she talking to him apart from everyone else? If it was band business, she would have talked to all of us. And if it had to do with me and Colton being together, the professional thing to do would have been to talk to us together. So, either she was being incredibly unprofessional or there was something else going on.

“Tanya, this really isn't the time. We have to be on stage in just over an hour and I still have to eat. I appreciate your concern, but seriously, you need to back the f*ck off on this one.” His voice was strained the way it was when he really wanted to scream but knew he couldn't. Obviously, this was something big.

“We need to talk about this,” she huffed. The bitch was relentless. You'd think she would understand he needed to eat and get ready, but no, she was more interested in talking. Now.

Lucky for Colton, two could play that game and I was ending it. I stormed out of the bus and around to the back. I stopped short, taking a few deep breaths preparing for the performance of a lifetime.

Feeling calmer, I walked around the back of the bus wrapping my arms around Colton's waist. “Baby, are you ready for lunch? We don't have much time left,” I asked sweetly. I stood on my tip-toes so I could place a tender kiss on his lips, squeezing his body in my embrace.

“Yeah, just a sec...” He turned to Tanya, “Not another word,” he warned before turning away from her.

The walk to the picnic area was quiet and tense. Several times, Colton started to say something and then stopped and I couldn't help but notice his eyes were focused anywhere I wasn't.

“So,” I started tentatively. “You going to tell me what that was about?” I wasn't sure if I was asking as his band mate or his girlfriend, but either way I felt like I had a right to know.

He placed a hand on my shoulder, nudging me around the back of a building. “It was nothing.” The crack in his voice and lack of eye contact said it was definitely something. That worried me but I wasn't about to bring it up in front of about fifty of our newest acquaintances.

The fact Colton couldn't look at me during lunch was telling. I just wished there was a way to know what he wasn't saying. I tried to play it off as we were both trying to shovel food into our faces as quickly as possible so we could head backstage but I knew I was lying to myself. I had to push the thoughts swirling through my mind into a dark corner of my brain so I could focus on what mattered; giving our fans the show they came to see.

I didn't wait for him when I finished eating; I simply threw my garbage into one of the green barrels at the edge of the picnic area and made my way to the stage.

“Hey, you okay over there?” I didn't see Jon leaning against a stack of equipment cases in the grassy area where the bands gathered before and after their performances.

“Nope.” That single, clipped word spoke volumes. No, I wasn't okay. No, I didn't want to talk about it. And most of all, no, I didn't want anyone trying to cheer me up. The aggression would make for a good show.

“Liar,” Jon laughed. When we were getting along, that's one thing I loved about Jon. He respected my personal space and never pushed me for more than I would give. Other people around me would be well served to do the same.

“You need to pull the reins back on that bitch, Jon. If I bite off a chunk of my tongue, I'm not going to be much use to you and it's quickly coming to that.” I didn't mean to blurt it out like that, especially not when we all needed to get our heads in the game, but the words were out before I realized it.

“There are a lot of bitches around here, Rain. Care to elaborate?”

“Biggest one of 'em all is headed this way,” I deadpanned nodding my head behind him. He turned to see who I was talking about and he shook his head slowly.

“What's she doing now?” He moved closer, crouching next to me in the grass so we wouldn't be overheard.

“It's probably nothing,” I said dismissively. The last thing I needed was to turn into that woman and upset the balance we'd achieved.

“Nothing doesn't rile you up like this. Do we need to talk after?”

I shook my head, “No, this isn't band meeting material. Seriously, I'm probably just being petty.” I pulled a few blades of grass from my side and twirled them between my fingers. I really didn't need this shit today and I knew I was bringing much of it on myself.

“Okay. Then you and me. We'll go for a drive and you're going to talk.” I think my outburst the first night Colton and I were in the beach house shifted the relationship between me and Jon. The way he looked at me and talked to me, I wasn't just the little sister anymore. I was a respected peer, capable of pulling her own weight. And that's exactly why I was hesitant to talk to him about my issues with Tanya. I didn't want to lose that respect.

“Whatever. I know you're not gonna let it go, so yeah...” I pushed myself up from the ground to warm up. I had to get away from everyone who could read my expressions or I'd never find that elusive focus.

Thanks to the set up for this leg of the tour, I didn't have to see Colton before we were on stage. There was no chance for him to needle, trying to figure out why I was upset with him. It was the one thing I never even considered when creating my top ten list of reasons to avoid hooking up with a band mate; he might be more of a girl than me and insist on talking about every little f*cking thing.

It only took the first eight beats of Animal, our newest single that was quickly moving up the charts, for me to forget everything except the twenty thousand fans waiting for me to make my way up the five steps in front of me. Jon and Travis hit it hard from the very first beat with Colton coming in after the first eight measures. Every layer that was added to the mix was more weight, more dirt; it was the perfect song to get the fans worked up.

By the end of the set, I was drenched in sweat and could feel the sunburn starting to set into my fair skin. I was pissed at myself for being distracted enough that I didn't think to put on sunscreen and angry with Colton for being the source of that distraction.

The high I felt after a great set quickly evaporated when Tanya the Terror was standing at the side of the stage as I descended the stairs.

“Not bad, Rain, but not great either.” I wanted to clobber the bitch upside the head. I'd like to see her get up there for over an hour in eighty-five degree heat and direct sunlight and see how she fared.

“Gee, thanks Tanya. I'll try to step it up for you next time.” I sneered. Don't engage her. Just walk away. There are way too many cameras here.

One corner of her lip turned up as she appraised my appearance. “I thought we'd agreed on what you'd wear when you have to be seen by people.”

“No, you agreed--” I was ready for a fight, but firm hands on both of my shoulders stopped me from continuing.

“Not here,” Jon warned. Colton wrapped his arm around my waist and glared at Tanya as we walked away.