Carey’s memories of Jase were some of the best—and most painful—memories of his life.
The crowd shifted, and Carey caught sight of Jase leaning against the wall, his arm around the shoulders of an attractive blond man. They were laughing, and the blond moved to press against Jase. As Carey watched, Jase drifted his hand down the other man’s side, where it came to rest lightly on his hip. Jase’s eyes were glittering, the adrenaline obviously still pulsing through him from the concert. The blond nuzzled Jase’s neck, holding on to him possessively.
It was a sight Carey had seen many times over the recent years, Jase with his groupies, sometimes a man, sometimes a woman. Gender didn’t matter, and it never had. Carey looked at Jase, taking in the long, lean body, tightly muscled and fit. He was undeniably attractive, with thick brown hair and startling green eyes, an elegant nose lightly dusted with freckles. He had an engaging smile, his top front teeth slightly crooked, giving him a boyish quality.
Jase looked up, catching Carey’s eye and giving him a big grin. He left his groupie and made his way over to Carey, then grabbed him up in a huge rib-crushing hug. Carey laughed, returning the hug, feeling that rush of emotion he always got from being with his closest friend.
“Jesus, you’re a sight for sore eyes!” Jase exclaimed. “Did you make it for the show? I saw you out there but I know you weren’t here for the whole thing.”
“I missed the first set but caught the rest. You were amazing, Jase. The band sounds really good.”
“I think some record label execs might have been here tonight,” Jase said in an exaggerated whisper. “I’m not sure, but I thought I recognized one of the guys in the audience who was at a meet and greet Layla made me go to a few months ago. She’s invited him back here along with the guys he was with, so I’m gonna have to do a little grip and grin.” He grimaced, and Carey smiled at Jase’s use of the old military term that meant mandatory socializing. “Sorry, Carey, I was hoping we could get out of here sooner rather than later.”
“Hey, no worries, man. I’m still tired from the drive, so I’ll just head back to your place if I need to.”
“You can stay through next weekend, right? I was surprised when you said Bill gave you that much time off.”
Carey smiled at the thought of his boss. “Yeah, he and Deb are actually headed to Hawaii for about ten days, so I got out while the gettin’s good. We’re hitting the fundraising circuit hard again when he gets back, so I’m gonna make good use of this time. Beach, drinking, and of course good music.” Carey elbowed Jase lightly in the gut, and Jase pulled him into another impulsive hug.
“Missed you, man.”
Carey squeezed him tight. Jase was the closest thing he had to family, and being with him was like coming home no matter where they each happened to be living.
Suddenly the blond groupie appeared at their sides and reached out for Jase, grabbing his arm, pouting when Jase impatiently shook him off.
“Gotta go work the room, Jayden, and you need to stay out of the way for a little while. Carey, I think Layla and Quinn are over there. Why don’t you go say hi, and I’ll get away from the crowd as soon as I can and come find you.”
“But baby, I thought….” The blond’s whiny voice grated on Carey’s ears, and he lifted his eyebrow at Jase. Jase called over his shoulder impatiently as he moved off in search of possible label execs. “Christ, Jayden, give it a rest! I’ll see you later, yeah?”
The groupie glared at Carey like it was his fault, and Carey gazed impassively back at him until Jayden moved off and leaned against a wall, crossing his arms petulantly as he sulked. Carey wondered what Jase was doing with someone like that, a surprising frisson of anger burning through him. He tried to shrug it off. There wasn’t much Carey could do about it, and like with Jase’s failed marriage a couple of years ago, he was always around to pick up the pieces if needed.
Carey caught sight of Jase’s three bandmates, and a genuine smile broke out over his face as he made his way toward them. The four men had been playing together for the past three years, and slowly but surely they were making a name for themselves on the San Diego band scene. The concert tonight was the biggest venue they had been invited to play so far, and Carey was thrilled for his friends.
Realizing he was hungry, Carey made a detour toward the food and drinks table, perusing the offerings. He’d just popped the top on a bottle of Amstel Light when he felt someone sidle up next to him, and he glanced over to see Jayden looking back at him with barely concealed hostility.