He tried a different tack for the conversation. “Did PJ tell you about the party tonight?”
“What party?”
“And she breaks her silence.” He grinned at me.
I’d been short with my dad ever since the journal incident, but he knew as well as I did that it would eventually pass. I was hurt that he’d sided with his wife over me, but I tried to look at it from his perspective. It was hard when the very smug Mrs. Price was cuddling into him.
Parker and I hadn’t really discussed what we’d do after the show. I tended to go with the flow, and sometimes that meant parties, but more often than not, it meant our group hanging out by our buses. Black Shadow could still rock the hell out of a sold-out arena, but they weren’t the party animals they’d been back in their twenties. Now most of them were married, some with adult children and others with lost loves under their belts.
People tended to think that big name rock tours were non-stop parties, and while that was true for some bands, this was a group of professional men who still knew how to have a good time. The bands typically kept to themselves for no other reason than the fact that they were each focused on their music with the goal in mind of making each show better than the last. Some of the guys in Pure Adrenaline had gotten close with some of the boys from Flashing Light, but that was largely without Parker. Mostly because Parker was always with me.
One night I’d asked him what he’d thought of that, whether he felt like he was missing out because he was always by my side as my hired protection.
And he’d said the words that would remain in my heart forever. “I’d rather be here with the woman I love than out partying with people I’ll never see again.”
“We rented out a place on Bourbon Street,” my dad said, bringing me back into the present conversation.
My immediate thought was that it sounded dangerous.
“Is that a good idea?” While there had certainly been sporadic debauchery on the tour, the members of Black Shadow tended to keep a pretty low profile. Likely it was because of the Randy threat, but it seemed odd to me that my dad would pick such a high-profile place to hold the final after party of the tour.
But then again, it was the last night. The last night always ended with a bang. Plus it was the Fourth of July.
My dad untangled himself from his wife, who had remained suspiciously quiet during our brief exchange. “It’s an excellent idea, CC. We’ll rock it out, have some fun, and be back in California tomorrow. You ready for that?”
I nodded. I wanted to tell him that I was terrified about what awaited me back in California, but I refrained from the confession in front of Jadyn.
“I’m ready, too, but I always hate to see the end of a tour.” My dad smiled wistfully.
“You really love the road, don’t you?”
“I really love performing our music. I love the atmosphere. I’ve never not enjoyed performing on the road.”
“When’s the next tour?”
My dad shrugged. “We have to get back in the studio. After our next release, we’ll probably hit the road again.”
“Have you been writing?”
He glanced at Jadyn, and then back at me. He nodded.
“Will Rebecca’s wedding be over by then?”
He chuckled. “Should be. She’s getting married next month.”
Jadyn seemed to perk up at that. “When are you and Parker getting hitched?” she asked.
“We haven’t picked a date yet.” I sounded defensive, but she wasn’t privy to my private life just because she was married to my father.
I glanced at the clock. “Have you eaten?” I asked my dad. He shook his head. “We need to get you fed and ready. Meet and greet in under an hour.”
I took care of my personal assistant duties and got my dad off to his meet and greet, and then I let Vanessa take over.
My job was officially over. While I had split PA duties during the second half of the tour, it still felt good that we’d managed to consistently deliver Gideon Price wherever he needed to be—and always on time.
Flashing Light took the stage first, and I watched from the trench in my favorite spot directly in front of Parker. When he backed up the words to “Trial and Error,” I felt the tears forming in my eyes. After we’d spoken about his family, he eventually confessed to me that I was the only person who knew what that song was really about. He’d never even told the guys in Flashing Light, the same men who played that song night after night. It held a very special meaning to him, and now to me. I loved watching his passion on the stage as he sang the back-up vocals and played the guitar.
After Flashing Light ended with a cover of Motley Crue’s “Home Sweet Home,” an homage to the fact it was the last night of the tour, I watched Pure Adrenaline perform. I’d seen bits and pieces of their set throughout the tour, but I never stayed long enough to watch the entire thing. Their energy pumped the crowd for the final act, my dad’s band.
Parker joined me in the trench during Pure Adrenaline’s second to last song, freshly showered and looking delicious and dangerous in a black shirt and a pair of jeans that hugged his body perfectly.
Someone in the crowd behind us evidently recognized him, because I heard additional screams and then I saw a security guard lean over to yell at someone on the other side of the rail separating us from the crowd. George took my dad’s set of credentials back to him as Parker and I stood in the trench. He rejoined us a few minutes later.
Parker poked me in the ribs. “Come with me,” he yelled over the music in my ear. He grabbed my hand, and George followed the two of us. Parker led us backstage off to the side.
“This is my favorite place to watch,” he said, and the three of us stood and watched from the side of the stage while Pure Adrenaline finished their last song. It was a vantage point people would’ve paid serious money for, but I liked the trench, down in front of the stage where I could see all of the action.
We moved out of the way after they finished their set. Roadies moved equipment off the stage while others moved equipment on to prepare for the final band. They moved with accuracy, precision, and speed.
It was fascinating to watch the transformation, and soon the stage was set for Black Shadow. Occasional waves of noise roared up from the crowd, and I could only assume it was the wannabe groupies who loved to flash their tits to the entire crowd before my dad’s band took the stage.
I’d been attending Black Shadow concerts for as long as I could remember, and tits were definitely a staple to the action. Since it was the last night of the tour, they were out in full force.
Soon the lights in the arena blacked out, and then Gideon, Mikey, Johnny, and Carlos walked by us to take their positions on the stage. We moved back to where we stood when we had watched Pure Adrenaline’s set. I felt Parker’s hand clutching mine, and it was one of those perfect moments where everything felt right in my little corner of the world.
A loud display of pyrotechnics sounded and flashed brightly before my eyes, and then drums and guitar and bass worked together to produce Black Shadow’s opening song, which was their most recent single. I watched my dad sing the words as the crowd sang along with him, and I couldn’t help the surge of pride that I always felt when I watched Black Shadow perform.
At some point, Jadyn appeared beside me to watch her husband perform. I did the most civil thing I could think of: I completely ignored her presence backstage.
We watched most of the set, and then Parker led me back to Flashing Light’s dressing room before the craziness ensued and the backstage area filled with horny women looking to hook up with Gideon Price.
I gagged a little just at the thought.
“Want to go to the after party?” Parker asked once we were settled into a comfy leather chair together back in his dressing room.
Vinnie was in a corner shoving his tongue down some woman’s throat. She had far too much cleavage sticking out of her shirt. Fitz and Garrett sat on the couch talking a bit more civilly with some other women. They seemed interested in conversation, at least, but Vinnie made it pretty clear what he wanted. I glanced over in the corner, and his hand had was grappling with her breast. He really was kind of a scumbag.